^LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.! 



I [SMITHSONIAN DEPOSIT.] 

i UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 



I 



JJ 




THE 



PROVIDENCE OF GOD 



DISPLAYED 



SERIES OE INTERESTING FACTS. 



PHILADELPHIA: 
TERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION". 



(_PRESI 






Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 

1848, by 

A. W. MITCHELL, M.D., 

in the Office of the Clerk of the District Court for the 
Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 




Stereotyped by 

S. DOUGLAS WYETH. 

No. 7 Pear St.. Philadelphia 



CONTENTS. 



Providential Shipwreck, 
Preservation in Danger, 
Wonderful Escape from a 
A novel Conveyance, 
A Mother's Prayers, 
A providential Change, 
The Purpose changed, 
Ingenuous Confession, 
A Profligate reclaimed, 
An Infidel converted, 
The Power of Truth, 
Daring Impiety arrested, 
The saved Sailor, 
" Now they are safe," 
The Friar converted, 
Seasonable Relief, 
Supplies furnished, 
Safety in a Storm, 
The Snare broken, 
Double Deliverance, 
Providential Accident, 
Transformation, . 
Poor Caleb ; or the Efficacy 
A Friend and Monitor, 
The mad Bull, . 
All for the best, . 
Merciful Detention, 
A mysterious Providence, 
Grateful Retrospection, 
The little Girl in the Mine, 
The converted Sailor, 
Land scented, 
The dying Bishop, 
Infidelity abandoned, 
A providential Wave, 
The blind Sailor, 
A faithful Tahitian, 



Page 



of Prayer, 



IV 



A Word in Season, 

Cruelty disarmed by Meekness, 

A royal Promise, 

The wounded Cadet, 

Suicide prevented, 

A Sailor preserved, 

The Influence of Truth, 

Never despair, 

An Exchange prevented, . 

An unexpected Guide, 

Persevering Piety rewarded, 

Faith honoured, 

An awful End, . 

Procrastination, 

A Fleet driven back, 

Self-destruction, 

The royal Persecutor's End, 

The Throne vacated, 

A painful Disappointment, . 

The Fall of Ambition, 

A Family cut off, 

The perjured Minister punished, 

Judgment in Kind, 

A warning Dream, 

Sorrow on the Sea, 

The Infidel reclaimed, 

The shipwrecked Sailor, . A 

The rush Basket, 

Bread cast upon the Waters, 

Henry Jung Stilling, 

Special Providence, 

A remarkable Interposition, 

A singular Dream, 

A remarkable Providence, 

Special Providence of God, 

The Power of Conscience, 

Poisoning prevented, 

"A good Book is never lost." 

Providential Sickness, 

Life from the dead, 

A Minister saved from the Pillory, 

The providential Thunder storm, 

Providential Escape of a young Lady, 



PROVIDENCE OF GOD DISPLAYED. 



PROVIDENTIAL SHIPWRECK 

Captain was bound on a voyage 

from America to England. A few days 
previous to his reaching his destined haven, 
he fell in with a severe and destructive 
storm, and although death and destruction 
stood before him, yet he felt unmoved, and 
fearlessly dared the worst, for his heart was 
as hard as the rocks he was fast approaching. 
The vessel, after receiving considerable da- 
mage, was driven upon a reef of rocks on 

the northern coast of Scotland. Capt. 

and most of his crew reached the shore in a 
boat. He saved his papers and some clothes. 
It was in the afternoon of the day ; the coast 
was rocky and desolate, and he had to walk 
a considerable distance before he came to a 
dwelling. This was a large farm-house. He 
entered it, and related his misfortune and 
situation. The kind host and his wife made 
every arrangement ibr his accommodation, 
until he could forward a letter and receive a 
1* 5 



6 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

return from his agent or consignee. Not- 
withstanding he was much exhausted with 
fatigue and anxiety, he was induced, by the 
kind attention and intelligent conversation of 
these friends, to sit and converse the evening 
away. After a plain but welcome repast, 
preparations were made for all hands to retire 
to rest, when, on a signal given, the domes- 
tics entered the room. The worthy farmer 
said, " Captain, I invariably make it my cus- 
tom, before retiring to sleep, to call my domes- 
tics and family around me, read to them a 
chapter from the Old or New Testament, and 
bow our knees in prayer to God. You, in 
the providence of God, being our inmate, will 
I hope feel no objection to unite with us, par- 
ticularly now as you must feel grateful to 
Him who has preserved your life in the 
storm." " As a matter of courtesy," said the 
captain, " I answered that I would wait dur- 
ing the religious duties he engaged in, but I 
candidly confessed that I never troubled my 
head about these matters. He looked at me 
when saying this, and sighed : — something 
within me felt that sigh. The good man 
read from the Scriptures, and on closing the 
book the whole of the establishment bowed 
down on their knees. Observing all upon 
their knees but myself, I had some conflict 
within me whether I should kneel or keep 
my seat: however, I followed the example 
before me, and knelt down. The farmer 
began in the most solemn and fervent man- 
ner to return thanks to the God of providence 



GOD DISPLAYED. 7 

for the blessings of the past day ; he then im- 
plored the pardon of all their sins, &c. This 
I considered very well. He did not stop 
here. After particularizing his family, he, in 
the most affectionate language and manner, 
offered up his supplications for the poor ?na- 
rinerwho had sought shelter under his roof. 
Having from previous conversation discov- 
ered I was a poor, dark, and ignorant sinner, 
he spread my case before the throne of God, 
and appeared to know the secrets of my heart 
better than I knew them myself; in short, he 
prayed most heartily and sincerely for my 
soul's salvation, and most fervently thanked 
God for my preservation from the effects of 
the storm. When we rose from our knees, I 
looked at the man with astonishment, won- 
dering what could induce him to pray so fer- 
vently for a stranger, or by what means he 
became acquainted with my sinful habits of 
life. I retired to the neat little room they had 
fitted up for me, to give vent to the crowd of 
thoughts which harassed my spirits. I walked 
fore and aft : — the consideration of the far- 
mer praying with so much fervency for me, 
and thanking God for my rescue from death 
during the storm, forcibly affected my mind. 
I began to see that sin was of more awful 
consequence than I before was sensible of, 
and particularly the sin of ingratitude. While 
ruminating upon these matters, I observed a 
book lying upon the small dressing table : my 
spirits being greatly agitated, I opened it, 
with a view of reading to compose myself to 



8 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

sleep. It was a Bible. I read, and I came 
to those words of Jeremiah, ' It is of the 
Lord's mercies that we are not consumed ; 
because his compassions fail not.' These 
words were the singular expi*ession the far- 
mer used in his prayer, which more than any 
other struck me with my ingratitude. I read 
on, and forgot the fatigue of my body until 
my light expired. I then threw myself on 
the bed, and for the first time in my life 
heaved a penitential sigh. The Lord was 
pleased by his Spirit to show me I was a 
great sinner; I sought for mercy, and the 
Lord heard my supplications. I continued a 
few days with this affectionate family, and 
when I left my hospitable and christian host, 
I could bear testimony to the truth of the 
promises of God in Christ Jesus, having his 
Spirit, whereby we cry, « Abba, Father.' For 
God who is rich in mercy, for his great love 
wherewith he loved us, even when we were 
dead in sin, hath quickened us together with 
Christ. — By grace we are saved." 



PRESERVATION IN DANGER. 

The following well-written and interesting 
statement, from the pen of the Rev. W. Ellis, 
of a perilous voyage from Huahine to Raiatea, 
in the South Seas, will be perused with inter- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 9 

est and delight by all who enjoy vivid de- 
scription, and especially by such as delight 
to notice the fulfilment of the promise, "Call 
upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver 
thee." 

"Early in 1819, Mr. Barff, myself, five 
natives, and an English sailor (the latter hav- 
ing charge of the boat), embarked about 9 a. 
m. from Huahine for Raiatea. Though the 
settlements were about thirty miles apart, yet, 
as the width of the channel was not more 
than twenty miles, the mountains and coast 
of the opposite island were distinctly seen. 
The wind being fair we expected to reach 
the Raiatean shore in three or four hours, 
and to arrive at the residence of our friends, 
long before the close of the day. 

" We had not, however, been an hour at sea 
when the heavens began to gather blackness, 
and dense lowering clouds interrupted our view 
of the shore which we had left, and that also 
to which we were bound. The wind became 
unsteady and boisterous ; the sea rose — not 
in long heavy billows, but in short, cross, and 
broken waves. We had no compass on board. 
The dark and heavy atmosphere obscured the 
sun, and prevented our discerning the land, 
and rendered us unconscious of the direction 
in which the gathering storm was driving us. 
We took down our large sails, leaving only a 
small sail in the fore part of the boat, thereby 
to keep her steady. 

" The tempest increasing, the natives be- 
came alarmed, and during the occasional in- 



10 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

tervals in which the wind abated its violence, 
the rain came down in such torrents, as if the 
windows of heaven had been opened, and a 
deluge was descending. The rain calmed 
in a measure the broken and agitated surface 
of the dark blue ocean, which raged in fear- 
ful and threatening violence. Our boat being 
but small, not above eighteen feet long, and 
her edge, when the sea had been smooth, not 
more than a foot or eighteen inches above its 
surface, every wave which broke near threw 
its spray over us, and each billow, in striking 
our little bark, forced part of its foaming 
waters over the bow, or the sides. Happily, 
we had a bucket on board, by means of 
which we were enabled to bale out the 
water. 

"In this state we continued, I suppose, 
about two hours, hoping that the clouds 
would disperse and the winds abate ; but in- 
stead of this, the storm seemed to increase, 
and with it, our danger. Most of the natives 
sat down in the bottom of the boat, and under 
the influence of fear, either shut their eyes, 
or covered them with their hands, expecting 
every moment that the waves would close 
over us. We were not unconscious of our 
perilous situation ; and as a last resort, took 
down our little sail, and our mast ; tied the 
mast, bowsprit, and oars together in a bundle, 
with one end of a strong rope, and fastening 
the other end to the bow of our boat, we 
threw them into the sea. This bundle of oars, 
masts, &c. &c. acted as a kind of buoy, or 



GOD DISPLAYED. 11 

floating anchor, and not only broke the force 
of the billows which were rolling towards the 
boat, but kept it tolerably steady, while we 
were dashed on the broken wave, or were 
wafted, we knew not whither, by the raging 
tempest and the pelting storm. 

" When the rain abated, the northern hori- 
zon became somewhat clear; but the joyful 
anticipation with which we viewed this 
change, was soon superseded by a new train 
of feelings. 

" < Hurt, hurt, tia MaanaP exclaimed one 
of the natives, and looking in the direction 
to which he pointed, we saw a large cylin- 
drical waterspout, extending like a massive 
column from the ocean to the dark and im- 
pending clouds. It was evidently at no very 
remote distance, and seemed moving towards 
our apparently devoted boat. 

« The roughness of the sea forbade our at- 
tempting to hoist a sail in order to avoid it ; 
and as we had no other means of safety at 
command, we endeavoured calmly to wait its 
approach. The natives abandoned them- 
selves to despair, and either threw themselves 
along in the bottom of the boat, or sat 
crouching in the keel with their faces down- 
wards, and their eyes covered with their 
hands. The sailor kept the helm ; Mr. Barrf 
sat on one side of the stern, and I on the 
other, watching the alarming object before 
us. 

" While thus employed, we saw two other 
waterspouts, and subsequently, a third, if 



12 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

not more, so that we seemed almost sur- 
rounded with them. Some were well de- 
fined, extending in an unbroken line from 
the sea to the sky, like pillars resting on the 
ocean as their basis, and supporting the black 
and overhanging clouds; others assuming 
the shape of a funnel, or inverted cone, at- 
tached to the clouds and extending towards 
the waters beneath. From the distinctness 
with which we saw them, notwithstanding 
the denseness of the atmosphere, the farthest 
could not have been many miles off. In some, 
we imagined that we could trace the spiral 
motion of the water as it was drawn to the 
clouds, which were every moment augment- 
ing their portentous darkness. The sense, 
however, of personal danger, and of almost 
immediate destruction, if brought within the 
vortex of their immediate influence, re- 
strained in a great degree all curious, and 
what in other circumstances would have been 
interesting observation, on the wonderful phe- 
nomena around us, the mighty agitation of 
the elements, and the terrific sublimity of 
these wonders of the deep. 

" The hoarse roaring of the tempest, and 
the hollow sounds which murmured on the 
ear as the heavy billows rolled in foam, or 
broke in contact with opposing billows, 
seemed as if deep called unto deep ; and the 
noise of waterspouts might almost be heard, 
while we were momentarily expecting that 
the mighty waves would sweep over us. 

" I had once before, when seized with the 



GOD DISPLAYED. 13 

cramp while bathing at a distance from my 
companions, been, as I supposed, on the 
verge of eternity. The danger then came 
upon me suddenly, and my thoughts while 
in peril were but few. The danger now ap- 
peared more imminent, and a watery grave 
every moment more probable; yet, there 
was leisure for reflection, and the sensibili- 
ties and powers of the mind were roused to 
an unusual state of excitement. 

"A retrospect of life, now perhaps about 
to close, presented all the scenes through 
which I had passed, in rapid succession, 
and in varied colours, each exhibiting the 
lights and shades by which it had been dis- 
tinguished. Present circumstances and con- 
nexions claimed a thought, the sorrow of the 
people, the dearest objects of earthly attach- 
ment, left but a few hours before in health 
and comfort on the receding shore ; those un- 
conscious infants who would soon, perhaps, 
be left fatherless, and dependent on their 
widowed mother, who, in cheerless loneliness, 
far from friends, and from home and country, 
might remain in exile among a strange untu- 
tored race, just emerging from the rudest bar- 
barism : these reflections awakened a train of 
feelings not to be described. But the most 
impressive exercise of mind was that refer- 
ring to the awful change approaching. The 
struggle and the gasp, as the wearied arm 
should attempt to resist the impetuous waves, 
the straining vision that should linger on the 
last ray of returning light as the deepening 
2 



14 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

veil of water would gradually conceal it 
for ever ; and the rolling billows heaving 
over the sinking and dying body, which, per- 
haps, ere life should be extinct might become 
the prey of voracious inhabitants of the deep, 
caused scarcely a thought, compared with 
that of the appearance of the disembodied 
spirit in the presence of its Maker ; the ac- 
count to 'be rendered, and the awful and un- 
alterable destiny which would await it there. 
These momentous objects absorbed all the 
powers of the mind, and produced an inten- 
sity of feeling, which for a long time rendered 
me almost insensible to the raging of the 
storm, or the liquid columns which threatened 
our destruction. 

" The hours that followed were some of 
the most solemn which I ever passed in my 
life. Although much occurred to memory 
that demanded deep regret, and most sincere 
repentance, yet I could look back upon that 
mercy which had first brought me to a know- 
ledge of the Saviour with a gratitude never 
perhaps exceeded. Him, and him alone, I 
found to be a refuge ; a rock in the storm of 
contending feelings, where my soul could cast 
the anchor of its hopes for pardon and accept- 
ance before God ; and although not visibly 
present, as with his disciples on the sea of 
Tiberias, we could not but hope that he was 
spiritually present, and that, should our 
bodies rest till the morning of the resurrec- 
tion in the unfathomed caverns of the ocean, 
our souls would be admitted to the abodes 



GOD DISPLAYED. 15 

of blessedness and rest. T could not but 
think how awful my state would have been, 
had I to that hour been ignorant of Christ, 
or had I neglected or despised the offer of his 
mercy; and while this reflection induced 
thankfulness to him, through whom alone 
we had been made to share a hope of im- 
mortality, it awakened a tender sympathy for 
our fellow voyagers, who sat in mournful 
silence at the helm, or in the bottom of the 
boat, and seemed averse to conversation. 

"Our prayers were offered to Him, who 
is a present help in every time of danger, for 
ourselves and for those who were sailing 
with us ; and under these and similar exer- 
cises of mind, several hours passed away. 
The storm continued all the day. At inter- 
vals we beheld through the clouds and rain 
one or other of the waterspouts, the whole 
of which appeared stationary, until at length 
we lost sight of them altogether, when the 
spirits of the native voyagers evidently re- 
vived. The natives of the South Sea Islands, 
although scarcely alarmed at thunder and 
lightning, are, at sea, greatly terrified by the 
appearance of waterspouts. They are sublime 
objects of unusual interest when viewed from 
the shore ; but when beheld at sea, especially 
if near, and from a small and fragile bark, it 
is almost impossible so to divest the mind of 
a sense of personal danger, as to contemplate 
with composure, still less with satisfaction, 
their stately movement, or the rapid internal 
circular eddy of the waters. 



16 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

" The storm, which had raged with vio- 
lence ever since an hour after our departure 
from Huahine, began to abate towards the 
close of the day. We did not, however, see 
land, and we knew not whither we had 
drifted ; but soon after the setting of the sun 
the clouds dispersed, and a streak of light 
lingering in the western sky indicated the 
direction in which we ought to proceed. The 
rain now ceased, the wind subsided, and al- 
though the surface of the sea was considera- 
bly agitated, it was no longer that quick dash- 
ing conflict of the waves to which we had 
been exposed, while 'a war of mountains 
raged upon its surface,' but a long and slug- 
gish motion. We pulled in our bundle of 
masts and oars, and placing the masts along 
the seats of the boat, the natives manned the 
oars, and rowed towards the west. 

" The moon rose soon after the light of the 
sun had departed, and although she shone 
not at first in cloudless majesty through an 
untroubled sky, yet the night was a perfect 
contrast to the day. The light fleecy clouds 
that passed over the surface of the sky, fringed 
with the moon's silver light, gave a pleasing 
animation to the scene, and — 

With scarce inferior lustre gleam'd the sea, 
Whose waves were spangled with phosphoric fire, 
As though the lightnings there had spent their shafts, 
And left the fragments glittering on the field. 

"After rowing some time we heard the 
hoarse roaring of the surf as it broke in foam 
upon the coral reef surrounding the shore. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 17 

To us this was a most welcome sound, indi- 
cating our approach to the land. Shortly 
afterwards we saw a small island, with two 
or three cocoa-nut trees upon it, and subse- 
quently the coral reef appeared in view. We 
now found ourselves near the Ava moa (sa- 
cred passage) leading to Opoa, the southern- 
most harbour in the island of Raiatea, and 
after rowing two or three miles, we landed 
about midnight. Weary and famished, 
drenched with rain, and suffering from cold 
occasioned by the wetness of our clothes, we 
were truly thankful, after the incidents of the 
day, to find ourselves once again on shore. 

" The hospitable inhabitants of the dwell- 
ing which we entered, soon rose from their 
beds, kindled a large fire in the centre of the 
floor, cooked us some provisions, and fur- 
nished us with warm and clean native cloth 
to wear, while our own clothes were hung 
up to dry. Having refreshed ourselves, and 
united in grateful thanksgiving to the Pre- 
server of our lives, we lay down upon our 
mats and enjoyed several hours of comforta- 
ble and refreshing repose. I have often been 
overtaken with storms at sea in European 
vessels, boats, and in native canoes, but to 
whatever real danger I may have been ex- 
posed, I never was surrounded by so much 
that was apparent, as during this voyage." — 
Polynesian Researches. 



18 THE PROVIDENCE OF 



WONDERFUL ESCAPE FROM A LION. 

A missionary in South Africa relates the 
following remarkable occurrence : — 

" I visited a poor Hottentot, who recently- 
experienced one of the most remarkable and 
providential deliverances that I ever heard 
or read of. I found him in great pain from 
the shocking wounds he had received on the 
occasion ; and in the course of conversation, 
he furnished me with the following particu- 
lars of his escape from the jaws of a lion, 
which he ascribes wholly to the gracious in- 
terposition of the Father of Mercies ; and 
which are, therefore, worthy of being re- 
corded to his glory. 

" About three weeks or a month ago, he 
went out on a hunting excursion, accompa- 
nied by several other natives. Arriving on 
an extensive plain where there was abund- 
ance of game, they discovered a number of 
lions also, which appeared to be disturbed by 
their approach. A prodigiously large male 
immediately separated himself from the troop, 
and began slowly to advance towards the 
party, the majority of whom were young, 
and unaccustomed to rencontres of so formi- 
dable a nature. When droves of timid ante- 
lopes, or spring-bucks only, came in their 
way, they made a great boast of their cou- 
rage, but the very appearance of the forest 
king made them tremble. 

" While the animal was yet at a distance, 



GOD DISPLAYED. 19 

they all dismounted, to prepare ■ for firing, 
and, according to custom on such occasions, 
began tying their horses together by means 
of their bridles, with a view of keeping the 
latter between them and the lion, as an object 
to attract his attention until they were able to 
take their deliberate aim. His movements, 
however, were at length too swift for them. 
Before the horses were properly fastened to 
each other, the monster made a tremendous 
bound or two, and suddenly pounced upon 
the hinder parts of one of them, which, in its 
fright, plunged forwards and knocked down 
the man in question, who was holding the 
reins in his hand. His comrades instantly 
took fright, and ran off with all speed ; and 
he of course rose as quickly as possible, in 
order to follow them. But no sooner had he 
regained his feet than the majestic beast, 
with a seeming consciousness of his superior 
might, stretched forth his paw, and striking 
him just behind the neck, immediately 
brought him to the ground again. He then 
rolled on his back, when the lion set his foot 
upon his breast, and lay down upon him. 
The poor man now became almost breathless, 
partly from fear, but principally from the in- 
tolerable pressure of his terrific load. He 
endeavoured to move a little on one side, in 
order to breathe ; but feeling this, the crea- 
ture seized his left arm close to the elbow ; 
and after once laying hold with his teeth, he 
continued to amuse himself with the limb for 
some time, biting it in sundry places down to 



20 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

the hand, the thick part of which seemed to 
have been pierced entirely through. 

"All this time, the lion did not appear 
angry, but he merely caught at his prey, like 
a cat sporting with a mouse that is not quite 
dead; so that there was not a single bone 
fractured, as would in all probability have 
been the case had the creature been hungry 
or irritated. While writhing in agony, gasp- 
ing for breath, and expecting every moment 
to be torn limb from limb, the sufferer cried 
to his companions for assistance, but cried in 
vain. On raising his head a little, the beast 
opened his dreadful jaws to receive it; but 
providentially, the hat, which I saw in its 
rent state, slipped off, so that the points of the 
teeth only just grazed the surface of the skull. 
The lion now set his feet upon the arm, from 
which the blood was freely flowing; his fear- 
ful paw was soon covered therewith, and he 
again and again licked it clean. The idea 
verily makes one shudder while I write. But 
this was not the worst, for the animal then 
fixed his flaming eyes upon those of the man, 
smelt on one side, and then on the other of 
his face, and having tasted of the blood, he 
appeared to have been inclined to devour his 
helpless victim. 

" < At this critical moment,' said the poor 
man, « I recollected having heard that there 
is a God in the heavens, who is able to de- 
liver to the very last extremity, and I began 
to pray that he would save me, and not allow 
the lion to eat my flesh and drink my blood.' 



GOD DISPLAYED. 21 

While he was thus engaged in calling upon 
God, the beast turned himself completely 
round. On perceiving this, the Hottentot 
made an effort to get from under him ; but 
no sooner did the creature observe his move- 
ment, than he laid terrible hold of his right 
thigh. This wound was dreadfully deep, 
and evidently occasioned the sufferer much 
excruciating pain. He again sent up his cry 
to God for help; nor were his prayers in 
vain. The huge animal soon after relin- 
quished quietly his prey, though he had not 
been in the least interrupted. Having delibe- 
rately risen from his seat, he walked majesti- 
cally off, to a distance of thirty or forty paces, 
and then lay down on the grass, as if for the 
purpose of watching the man. The latter, 
being relieved most happily from his load, 
ventured to sit up, which circumstance imme- 
diately attracted the lion's attention ; never- 
theless it did not induce another attack, as 
the poor fellow naturally expected, but, as if 
bereft of power, and unable to do any thing 
more, he rose again, took his departure, and 
was seen no more. The man, seeing this, 
took up his gun, and hasted away to his ter- 
rified companions, who had given him up for 
dead. Being in a state of extreme exhaus- 
tion from loss of blood, he was immediately 
set upon his horse, and brought as soon as 
possible to the place where I found him. Dr. 
Gaulter, son of the Rev. John Gaulter, being 
stationed at a military post in the neighbour- 
hood, and hearing of the case, hastened to his 



22 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

relief, and has very humanely rendered him 
all necessary assistance ever since. 

" Mr. Gaulter informs me, that, on his 
arrival, the appearance of the wounds was 
really alarming, and amputation of the arm 
seemed absolutely necessary. To this, how- 
ever, the patient was not willing to consent, 
having a number of young children whose 
subsistence depended entirely upon his labour. 
6 As the Almighty had delivered me,' said he, 
1 from that horrid death, I thought, surely he 
is able to save my arm also ;' and, astonish- 
ing to relate, several of the wounds are al- 
ready healed, and there is now hope of his 
complete recovery." 



A NOVEL CONVEYANCE. 

The following remarkable fact, is transcribed 
from " The Twelfth Report of the Committee 
of the London Association in aid of the Mis- 
sions of the United Brethren for the year 
1829," and affords a striking illustration of 
Divine Providence, in reference to those mis- 
sions. Here are seen the triumphs of the 
gospel in the conversion of two poor pagans, 
who, " in their heathen state," says the mis- 
sionary, "came into the neighbourhood of 
Lichtenau, and gave us much trouble by 
their wild dances and outrageous beha- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 23 

viour." The account is from the diary of 
the missionaries at Friedericksthal, in Green- 
land. 

" On July 4th (1827), the assistant, Natha- 
niel, arrived here with his family. He im- 
mediately called upon us, to make a report 
both of his success in the seal-fishery, and of 
the remarkable preservation of his life ; the 
narrative of which might almost appear fabu- 
lous, had he not related it himself 5 and he is 
a man of unimpeached veracity. First he 
exclaimed, < I have now experienced what it 
is to be near death ;' and then related the fol- 
lowing adventure : — 

" Being in company with another brother, 
who was yet inexperienced in the manage- 
ment of a kayak, he met a neitsersoak, the 
largest kind of seal, which he killed. He 
then discovered his companion upon a flake 
of ice, endeavouring to kill another of the 
same species, and in danger. He therefore 
left his dead seal, kept buoyant by the blad- 
der, and hastened to help his brother. They 
succeeded in killing the seal, but suddenly a 
strong north wind arose, and carried off both 
the kayaks to sea. They now with terror 
beheld themselves left upon a small flake of 
ice, far from land, driving about in the open 
sea ; nor could they discover any kayaks in 
the neighbourhood. They cried aloud for 
help, but in vain. Meanwhile the wind arose 
in strength, and carried both the kayaks, and 
also the piece of ice, swiftly along with the 
waves. Having lost sight of the former, they 



24 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

now saw themselves without the least hope 
of deliverance. Nathaniel added, * 1 con- 
tinued praying to my Saviour, and thought 
with great grief of the situation of my poor 
family, but felt a degree of hope arising in 
my breast.' Unexpectedly he saw his dead 
seal floating towards him, and was exceed- 
ingly surprised at its approaching against the 
wind, till it came so near the flake of ice that 
they could secure it. But how could a dead 
seal become the means of their deliverance ? 
and what was now to be done ? All at once 
Nathaniel resolved, at a venture, to seat him- 
self upon the dead floating seal, and by the 
help of his paddle, which he had kept in his 
hand when he joined his companion on the 
ice, to go in quest of the kayaks. Though the 
sea continually overflowed him, yet the body 
of the seal being sufficiently buoyant to bear 
his weight, he kept his seat, made after the 
kayaks, and succeeded in overtaking his own, 
into which he crept, and went in quest of 
that of his companion, which he likewise 
found. He also kept possession of the seal, 
and now hastened in search of the flake of 
ice, on which his companion was most anx- 
iously looking out for him. Having reached 
it, he brought him his kayak, and enabled 
him to secure the other seal, when both re- 
turned home in safety." 



GOD DISPLAYED. 25 



A MOTHER'S PRAYERS. 

An aged pious woman had one son. She 
used every means in her power to lead him 
to the Saviour, but he grew up gay and dis- 
sipated. She still followed him with prayers 
and entreaties, faithfully warned him of his 
awful state as a sinner before God, and told 
him what his end would be, dying in that 
condition. But all seemed alike unavailing. 
He one day said, " Mother, let me have my 
best clothes, I am going to a ball to-night." 
She expostulated with him, and urged him 
not to go, but all in vain. « Mother," said 
he, " let me have my clothes ; I will go : it is 
useless to say any thing about it." 

He put on his clothes, and was going out. 
She stopped him, and said, " My child, do 
riot go." He still persisted, when she added, 
" My son, remember when you are dancing 
with your companions in the ball-room, I 
shall be out in that wilderness praying to the 
Lord to convert your soul." The youth 
went to the ball, and the dancing com- 
menced ; but instead of the usual gaiety, an 
unaccountable gloom pervaded the whole 
assembly. One said, " We never had so dull 
a meeting in our lives." Another observed, 
" I wish we had not come, we have no life — 
we cannot get along." A third continued, 
" I cannot think what is the matter." 

The young man in question felt his con- 
science smitten, and bursting into tears, said, 
3 



26 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

« I know what is the matter. My poor old 
mother is now praying in yonder wilderness 
for her ungodly son." He took his hat, and 
said, " I will never be found in such a place 
as this again !" From that night he began 
to pray for mercy ; his mother's prayer was 
heard for his conversion, and he gave evi- 
dence that he was become a new creature in 
Christ Jesus. 

Who knows the mighty power of prayer ? 

It opes the hand of' God : 
The Spirit hears its powerful cry, 

And sheds his peace abroad- 



A PROVIDENTIAL CHANGE. 

The following interesting anecdote, as related 
by Lieutenant (afterwards Major-General) 
Burn, of the Royal Marines, while it tends 
to establish the doctrine of Divine Provi- 
dence, demonstrates also that God is not un- 
mindful of his people who serve him, but 
that he chooses their inheritance for them.* 

" In the year 1772, when I was a subaltern 
in the Royal Marine Corps, two other officers 
and myself were ordered to embark, one in 
each of the three guard-ships then stationed 
in the Medway. Two of them lay close to 
the dock-yard, affording at all times easy 

* See " Memoirs of Major General Burn," published by the 
Presbyterian Board of Publication. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 27 

access to the shore., but the other (the Reso- 
lution, 74) was moored half way 'down the 
river towards Sheerness, from whence in 
winter and bad weather it was troublesome 
to land, and sometimes impracticable. 

" For this reason it was natural for each 
of us to wish for one of the Chatham ships, 
and strong interest was accordingly made by 
us respectively with the commanding officer 
for this purpose. Finding that he must ne- 
cessarily disoblige one of the three, he ordered 
us to attend the parade next morning, and 
draw lots for our ships. This of course drove 
me to my stronghold ; and if ever I prayed 
with fervency in my life, it was now. I 
pleaded hard with the Searcher of hearts, 
that he knew my chief motive for desiring 
one of the Chatham ships was that I might 
constantly attend the means of grace, and the 
ordinances of his house, and I felt confident 
that, if I really were a child of God, he would 
grant my request ; since the < lot thus cast 
into the lap' was wholly at his disposal. 

" The important morning came, and I drew 
the dreadful ship down the river. Had I 
drawn my death warrant, I hardly think that 
it would have affected me more. My prayer 
was now apparently rejected, and the enemy 
of souls, taking advantage of the agitated 
state of my depraved heart, easily made me 
draw the conclusion, that either I was no 
Christian, or that God paid no attention to 
those who professed to be such. In this 
gloomy desponding state, much like a crimi- 



28 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

nal going to execution, I embarked the same 
afternoon in His Majesty's Ship Resolution, 
lying in a dreary part of the Medway, about 
two or three miles from Sheerness. I had 
just time to be introduced to the officers in 
the ward-room when dinner came in. The 
third lieutenant, happening to be caterer that 
week, of course stood up at the head of the 
table, and asked a blessing, with so much 
seriousness that it quite astonished me ; for 
being well acquainted with the customs of 
the ward-room in a king's ship, I had never 
heard any thing of the kind so solemnly pro- 
nounced there before. I determined to mark 
every word which should proceed from the 
gentleman's lips, in hope of hearing some- 
thing that might enable me to ascertain his 
character. Nothing decisive occurred during 
the dinner, but no sooner was the wine placed 
on the table, than he was attacked by several 
of his messmates on his religious sentiments. 
and I soon discovered that he bore the genu- 
ine marks of a true Christian by his judicious 
reproofs, and the very able manner in which 
he confuted all their infidel arguments. Wish- 
ing, as I supposed, to know what spirit I was 
of, they frequently appealed to me for the 
truth of what they advanced, but having al- 
ways decided against them, I was impercept- 
ibly drawn into the disputation on the side 
of the caterer. 

" When the allowance of wine was drunk 
(for it was a sober, well-regulated mess), the 
purser rose and broke up the company, ex- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 29 

claiming, with an oath, 'Our new messmate 
is as great a Methodist as Tomlinson. 9 I 
smiled, being well pleased to be associated 
with such a man. As two needles touched 
by the loadstone, when they fall near to each 
other among chaff will soon come together, 
so this Methodist lieutenant and I speedily 
came into contact. After having exchanged 
a few questions, we went down to his cabin 
in the gun-room, had an hour's comfortable 
conversation, and concluded with prayer, al- 
though an hour before we had never seen 
one another's faces. This singular circum- 
stance could not fail to bring to my recollec- 
tion the prayer I had so culpably forgotten, 
now completely granted, and I began to be 
reconciled to the ship which Providence had 
assigned me. But that God who abounds in 
goodness, and delights in mercy, never con- 
fers his favours by halves. A few days 
hardly had elapsed, when an order came 
from the Admiralty to send the Resolution 
up to Chatham, and one of the ships there 
to take her place. This was such welcome 
news to all on board, that lest the order should 
be countermanded, we obeyed it the same 
day ; for, the wind and tide favouring, we 
weighed, and came to an anchor off the 
dock-yard before two o'clock. 

"Thus my prayer was answered most 
completely, which at first appeared rejected ; 
but it was in the Lord^s own way. Had 
mine been attended to, and I had drawn the 
ship which afterwards went down the river, 
3* 



30 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

I should have been miserable : so true it is 
that « we know not what to pray for as we 
oueht.' " 



THE PURPOSE CHANGED. 

A parent felt extremely anxious for the con- 
version of her son. She had seen him seve- 
ral times aifected by the momentous truths 
of the Scriptures. At length he broke through 
every restraint, tore himself from all his con- 
nexions, and was resolved to seek his fortune 
(or his ruin) in a distant part of the world. 
Before he carried the whole scheme into 
effect, his distracted mother resolved to make 
one more effort to save him from ruin ; and 
after fervently imploring the co-operating 
energy of the Spirit, she hastened to the place 
of his residence. She met him as he was 
going to leave his native country for ever. 
Not knowing his intention, she urged him to 
visit his home once more. He refused, but 
her tears prevailed. He went, secretly in- 
tending to return and accomplish his pur- 
pose ; but that grace his mother had been 
pleading for, interposed and prevented. 

On the following Sabbath, he entered the 
place which he had been accustomed to at- 
tend ; he listened to the truths with which 
he had been familiar from infancy, but he 
listened with very different emotions. The 



GOD DISPLAYED. 31 

word came with power ; old things passed 
away, and all things became new. Redeemed 
from the dominion of his evil propensities, 
and absolved from his accumulated guilt, 
amidst the rejoicing of the heavenly inhabit- 
ants, he was introduced to the glorious lib- 
erty of the sons of God ; and his purpose 
of wandering forth like another prodigal was 
changed. 



INGENUOUS CONFESSION. 

One of the Secretaries of the Bethel Associ- 
ation of Liverpool, had presented to him, by 
a friend in London, a large packet of tracts, 
to be distributed among seamen. A small 
selection was presented to the mate of a ves- 
sel, who had been several times at the Bethel 
prayer meetings, and who promised to cir- 
culate them among the crew of the vessel he 
sailed in. This young man, after a lapse of 
nearly four years, returned to Liverpool, 
master of the brig Ceres. Seeing the secre- 
tary passing, he invited him into his cabin, 
and put him in remembrance of his having 
given the tracts. He stated he had acted 
according to his promise, in handing the 
tracts to the men and boys on board. One 
of the apprentices, a youth of bad character 
for swearing and profaning the name of God, 
after reading a tract called " Serious Thoughts 



32 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

on Eternity," was observed several days by 
the mate to be very thoughtful and serious, 
and sighed at times as if something lay heavy 
on his mind. The mate asked him what 
caused him to look so sorrowful. Oh ! 

Mr. , eternity ! eternity ! — that awful 

word rings in my ears all day and 
night too. What will become of me in 
eternity ?" The mate observed he was but 
a poor hand to speak to the lad on religious 
feelings, being but little acquainted with 
them, but said, " You have been a wicked 
lad ; but if you pray to God he may have 
mercy. Do your duty and refrain from 
swearing ; read good books, and particularly 
the Bible." He would, after this, often be 
seen, when ship's duty did not appear to for- 
bid, leaning over the gunwale of the vessel 
evidently at prayer. The scoffs and jeers of 
the men, on account of his seriousness and 
dejection, and when reading the Bible, would 
sometimes drive him from his purpose when 
seeking retirement, but could not shake him 
from his stability. He had a soul to be 
saved ; the work was of God, and by the as- 
sistance of his Holy Spirit he bore all, de- 
termining to secure an earnest in a blissful 
eternity ! 

On one occasion, seeking to avoid the 
scoffs of the crew, he crept (as he thought, 
unperceived) down the fore hatch, and knelt 
down, leaning over the chest of one of the 
men, in prayer. The man to whom the chest 
belonged, having seen him, as he said, go 



GOD DISPLAYED. 33 

down with a suspicious appearance, waited 
a few seconds, — followed him, and seeing 
him by his chest, dragged him on deck, and, 
with oaths, declared he was opening his 
chest to rob him. The boy denied the ac- 
cusation. The bustle this contest caused 
brought the mate forward to inquire the 
reason. The man accused, the boy denied. 
The mate, feeling in favour of the lad, and 
supposing some religious cause for his being 
thus found, encouraged him to explain. The 
boy, bursting into tears, answered, " I was 
trying to do what my accuser ought to do ; 
Iivas kneeling against his chest in prayer. " 
The man was so struck by the boy's manner 
of confession, and the sincerity of his look, 
that he replied, in a softened tone, "Why did 
you not say so at first?" — "Because," the 
boy answered, " I thought you would sneer 
and ridicule me." — " No, far from that. I 
will never ridicule you again ; and will, as 
far as I can, prevent your being ridiculed by 
others. I sincerely belive you innocent, and 
when 37-011 pray again, remember me." The 
boy continued to hold fast his faith ; he stood 
firm in his religious profession ; and on his 
return from his voyage, became a member 
of a Christian Church in the west of Eng- 
land : and to this day, appears to adorn the- 
profession he makes, devoting his best ser- 
vices to promote the glory of God. 



34 THE PROVIDENCE OP 



A PROFLIGATE RECLAIMED. 

A son of pious parents became acquainted 
with some young men, who were not only 
thoughtless, but wild ; and the pernicious 
effects of bad society soon became too 
visible. From bad he became worse, until 
he had outstripped all his competitors in vice. 
He was sent back loaded with disgrace to his 
mother's house. Here, the most affectionate 
entreaties were urged upon him ; tears were 
shed before him in vain. He still continued 
his profligate habits, and carried them to 
such a pitch that his mother was under the 
necessity of insisting on his finding out some 
employment, and instantly leaving her house. 
He directly entered as a sailor on board a 
vessel, and, though his mother felt much at 
the idea of the dangers to which he would be 
exposed, yet under the hopes of his being 
taken away from his wretched companions, 
she consented to his choice. Years rolled 
away in this employment, and, instead of 
growing better he appeared to grow worse ; 
more hardened in sin, and more opposed to 
God. Yet still did his mother pour out at 
the throne of mercy earnest supplications on 
his behalf. 

At length he went a very long voyage. The 
ship sailed and arrived at the port to which 
they were bound, and from thence the parties 
concerned had letters, with the account of 
her again sailing for En-gland. Many months 



GOD DISPLAYED. 35 

passed away, and no further accounts were 
received, until every hope of her safety had 
vanished. What were her feelings as she 
fancied her wicked son engulphed by the 
foaming waves, and hurried, perhaps with 
an oath on his lips, into the presence of an 
oifended God, none can tell ! To avoid the 
agony of mind a sight of the sea produced, 
she removed to an inland village, and there, 
in solitude, brooded over the wreck of all her 
hopes. 

She was one day sitting in her little par- 
lour, when she heard a knock at the door : 
on opening it, an emaciated sailor presented 
himself, and asked her for an alms. Tears 
burst from her eyes ; she thought of her son, 
who was in some foreign land, in like con- 
dition, with this poor man, if not lost for 
ever ! She, with deep feeling, questioned 
the poor fellow as to the cause of his mis- 
fortunes, when he informed her that he had 
been shipwrecked on a barren rock with a 
comrade, who had died from exhaustion 
before the ship passed that took him off. 
6 But,' said he, < what appears so dreadful a 
misfortune, has proved to me the greatest 
blessing. This man, who was once quite as 
wicked as myself, brought with him a Bible ; 
on this rock we read it ; we prayed to God, 
and he was pleased to hear our prayers. He 
died in my arms, but, oh ! you cannot con- 
ceive how resigned, how happy ! Before 
he died, he gave me that blessed book, and 
never, never will I part with it.' Here he 



36 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

took it from his bosom and presented it to 
her. She opened it, and exclaiming, " My 
son, my son," fainted. It was the Bible she 
had put into the box of her son, little think- 
ing at the time that he would ever look into 
it, or imagining that it was to be the means, 
under the blessing of God, of his conver- 
sion. 



AN INFIDEL CONVERTED. 

A lady in Paris, moving in the higher 
circles of life, of cultivated mind, and of ele- 
gant manners, but a disciple of the infidel 
philosophy, recently lost in a fatal duel her son, 
her only child ; and she was a widow. The 

Countess of , a christian lady, sought 

her friend. She found the bereaved widow 
on her couch, cold, silent, restless, melan- 
choly, and on the verge of despair. The 
philosophy of this world had forsaken her. 
The Countess began to speak of the refuge 
which the soul finds in addressing itself to 
God in time of trouble ; to a Being so great, 
and good, and tender. The wretched victim 
of infidelity turned on her a vacant stare, and 
said, " Did you speak of God ? Who is he ? 
where is he ? what is he ? I know nothing 
of him." Struck by such an awful instance 
of infidelity in such circumstances, the Coun- 
tess answered not - y for she felt in a moment 



GOD DISPLAYED. 37 

that she could do nothing to restore such a 
moral ruin. The interval of silence was an 
interval of prayer that God would take his 
mighty work into his hands. Acting in this 
spirit, she opened her New Testament, and 
begged her to allow her to read a few pas- 
sages from a book which had been useful to 
herself in her own recent afflictions. The 
effect upon the poor bereaved widow, was 
of a gentle, soothing nature. No remark 
from either party was made upon the book 
itself. When the Countess rose to leave her 
friend, she said, " I perceive you are entirely 
ignorant of the only source of comfort, and 
I cannot impart it to you ; will you give me 
one proof of your confidence in my affection 
and sympathy V- " I will." « It is to use 
one short prayer in the words I give you, 
and to use it as often as you feel a new ac- 
cession of despair, or a fresh agony of grief, 
— < Lord, enlighten thou me, that I may 
know thee/ " 

For many days the Countess continued 
her visits, and read the little book ; and on 
every successive visit to her friend, she found 
an increasing attention to the subject read. 
They rarely had any conversation on re- 
ligion ; for the Countess found that whenever 
she attempted it, she could not make herself 
understood. She therefore confined herself 
to reading, accompanied by secret prayer for 
the Divine blessing. She was more en- 
couraged in her hope of success, because she 
was assured by her friend that she used the 
4 



38 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

short prayer continually ; and when she did 
not know where to turn, or how to disengage 
her thoughts from the horrors of the past, she 
found relief in repeating. the short prayer. 

After these daily readings had continued 
for some time, the bereaved mother began to 
express more distinctly the effect of what she 
heard. " Your book told me such and such 
a thing yesterday ; that thought has followed 
me ever since. I wish you would leave it 
with me until to-morrow." -The Countess 
could not consent. She had two motives in 
her refusal, — she hoped to increase the desire 
by delay ; and she did not, at that time, wish 
the book to fall into the hands of an infidel 
sister, who had all her life influenced the 
mind of this unhappy widow. The desire 
to possess this wonder-working book became 
stronger ; and the following note was sent : 
" Can you lend me your invaluable treasure 
a few hours? I will not be unreasonable. 
It shall be returned to you soon." It was 
lent, and returned with the following note : — 
" I have been deeply affected by your gene- 
rous confidence in lending me a book so 
precious to you. I dare not keep it any lon- 
ger ; but pray let me have a Bible ! It 
shall never leave me. It shall be my 
guide, my support, perhaps, one day, my 
consolation ! Oh, when shall I have ob- 
tained that holy joy ! You shall know of it, 
that your heavenly charity may be rewarded. 
Do not leave me to myself; I seem to feel 



GOD DISPLAYED. 39 

that I shall understand your object. my 
God, give me strength and perseverance !" 
The Bible having been delayed a few days, 
the following note was sent : — 

" Permit, me, my dear , to remind you 

of your promise to send me a Bible. Our 
last conversation did me much good. It 
went to the source of my disquietude. I feel 
as though I could repose myself in con- 
fidence upon God. Sometimes I feel as if I 
could love him with all my heart ; while I 
ask him fervently to give me the illumination 
I want so much. I do not, cannot, doubt 
that he will communicate the light that is 
necessary to my feeble understanding." 

The Bible was procured and sent, after 
which this note was written : — 

" I cannot thank you sufficiently for pro- 
viding me with the only occupation of which 
I am capable ; but I cannot tell you that 
your present brought consolation to my 
heart. I must acknowledge, that after read- 
ing it I was more deeply afflicted. I am 
even more sorrowful, more dejected, than be- 
fore I read it. Shall I tell you why ? I am 
led to look back upon my past life with hor- 
ror ; and the dreadful thought suggests itself: 
Is it not probable that my sins brought on 
my child his awful catastrophe? 0, my 
God, was I indeed the cause of all that he suf- 
fered in life and death ? I can only weep 
abundantly. Divine grace must do for me." 

The Countess addressed to her a letter of 
an encouraging nature, opening to her the 



40 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

freeness and fulness of the gospel. It was 
thus acknowledged: — 

"Your letter has made me weep much, 
but do not repent having written it ; for the 
tears were the gentlest and kindest I ever 
shed. My heart is riveted to one phrase, 
6 able to save to the uttermost.' I thank you 
for having shed such a drop of balm on my 
wounds. I want to talk to you on my sor- 
row, and my hopes ; if you can believe that 
I ought to have any hope, although it is 
mingled with sorrow. But mercy, mercy !" 

Here terminates the correspondence, but 
not the intercourse. The Countess had an 
interesting interview with her friend. She 
found that the Spirit of God had indeed 
begun a good work, and was gradually lead- 
ing her mind into all truth. Grief and 
despair on the loss of her son, had given way 
to a strong anxiety to understand the word 
of God. This new study absorbed the whole 
soul of the mother. She said she read it in- 
cessantly, but without knowing how far she 
properly understood it ; but when she met 
with a passage which she did not understand, 
she returned to the place, where she had 
comprehended the meaning, and continued 
her reading till she again encountered the 
difficulty; and then she uttered her first 
prayer, "0 Lord, give me light that I may 
know thee?' She remained at that point, 
without attempting to proceed, until she had 
obtained a knowledge of the passage. — 
" Then," said she, " I often find more force, 



GOD DISPLAYED. 41 

and beauty, and information in that which 
had just confounded me, than in all I had 
understood before." She also said, " This 
book is my nightly comfort, as well as my 
daily occupation. When I cannot sleep, I 
desire my female servant to bring me my 
book, and place my candle at my pillow ; 
and so the night becomes no more tedious 
and gloomy." 

Attempts were made by her sister to lead 
back this interesting woman to the darkness 
and despair of the infidel philosophy, but in 
vain. She reads the Bible, and scarcely 
anything else ; and lives to adorn its doc- 
trines. 



THE POWER OF TRUTH. 

Francis Junius was a young nobleman of 
considerable merit. At the age of thirteen, 
he commenced the study of the law, and at 
the end of two years was sent to Lyons, 
where he continued his pursuits under Bar- 
tholomew Anneau, president of the college. 
While residing in this city, he unhappily im- 
bibed the principles of infidelity, but was 
subsequently delivered from them by a most 
gracious interposition of Divine Providence, 
which, at the same time, appears to have 
formed the future bias of his mind. His 
father, who was a pious man, deeply deplored 
4 * 



42 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

the state of his son, and with much fervent 
prayer sought for his conversion and conse- 
cration to the service of Christ. Every 
means he could apply he employed for this 
purpose ; and at length his prayers were 
heard, and the means he employed were 
crowned with success. The particulars of 
the circumstances are narrated by Junius 
himself: — 

" My father," he writes, <* who was fre- 
quently reading the New Testament, and had 
long observed, with grief, the progress I had 
made in infidelity, placed that book in my 
way in his library, in order to attract my at- 
tention, praying it might please God to bless 
his design, without giving the least intimation 
of it to me : the New Testament thus provi- 
dentially laid in my way, I opened, deeply 
engaged in other thoughts. At the very first 
view, that most august chapter of John the 
Evangelist and Apostle — ' In the beginning 
Was the Word, and the Word was with God, 
and the word was God,' — presented itself to 
me. I read part of the chapter, and while 
reading, was so affected by it, that I was 
suddenly struck with the divinity of the argu- 
ment, and the majesty and authority of the 
composition, as very far surpassing the high- 
est nights of human eloquence. My body 
shuddered, my mind was overwhelmed, and 
I was so agitated the whole day, that I 
scarcely knew who I was. From the day 
that God wrought so mightily in me by the 
power of his Spirit, I began to have less 



GOD DISPLAYED. 43 

relish for all other studies and pursuits, and 
bent myself with great ardour and attention 
to every thing which had relation to God." 
The conversion of the son from infidelity 
afforded no small delight to the father, who, 
on his intimating that he wished to change 
his studies, acquiesced in his wishes, and per- 
mitted him to go to Geneva. In consequence 
of the troubles occasioned by the war which 
had just commenced, Junius was disappointed 
of the remittances he expected, and was able 
only to obtain a Bible, Calvin's Institutes, 
Beza's Confession, and Cebellerius's Hebrew 
Grammar, and was at length reduced to work 
as a day labourer at the fortifications of the 
city, alternately labouring and studying. At 
length he was recognized by a poor man, 
whose mother, when a widow with a large 
family, had lived near the parents of Junius, 
and been relieved by them, who gratefully 
offered him assistance, and received him into 
his cottage for near seven months, until the 
war being terminated, Junius obtained the 
necessary pecuniary aid, and shortly after 
received an order from his father to discharge 
his debts and return home. He afterwards 
rose to great eminence, and filled the divinity 
professor's chair at Heidelberg and Leyden. 
" The law of the Lord is perfect, converting 
the soul : the testimony of the Lord is sure, 
making wise the simple." 



44 THE PROVIDENCE OF 



DARIXG IMPIETY ARRESTED. 

The madness and folly of infidelity are dis- 
played in an almost infinite variety of ways, 
and in none, perhaps, more than in the at- 
tempts made by its advocates to destroy that 
book which witnesses against them now, and 
by which they will be judged and condemned 
hereafter. 

A party of such unhappy persons met to- 
gether, some years since, for the purpose 
above referred to, not doubting for a moment, 
amidst their rude and blasphemous mirth, 
that they should accomplish their design. 
The question after a while was, who should 
throw it into the fire. That any question on 
such a point should have existed was singu- 
lar, yet so it was. Solemn silence prevailed 
— no one was bold enough to offer his ser- 
vices to do what each professed was right to 
be done. They were obliged to cast lots. 
The man on whom the lot fell, rose up from 
his chair, and taking the Bible in his hand, 
advanced with it towards the fire ; but the 
thought suddenly came across his mind, 
" what if the Bible should be true ! — I am 
then undone for ever !" The book fell out 
of his hands. He was instantly struck with 
horror and amazement, and cried out, " No ! 
rather let me be burnt, than I should burn 
the Bible !" He had been the child of many 
prayers, and although apparently lost upon 
him, at this moment of extremity their effi- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 45 

cacy was proved. His companions imme- 
diately set up a hideous roar, expressive of 
their rage and contempt, and then, with a 
bitterness which Satanic agency appeared 
only capable to supply, exclaimed, " Why, 
fellow, you are not fit to be among us; 
we 7 il have you out I" " Put me out/' re- 
joined the trembling man. — The door was 
opened, and he instantly left them for ever ! 

Wretched and desponding, he wandered 
about, not knowing what to do. He was 
alive to his wickedness and guilt. To him it 
appeared that he had committed sins which 
never could be forgiven. Nothing could ex- 
ceed the agony of his mind. Some friends 
advised him to go to church : " No," he an- 
swered, " I cannot go to church : people know 
what I have been, and they will not give me 
credit for being sincere. Besides, I am not 
worthy to associate with the worshippers of 
God." At length it happened that he passed 
by a church one week-day evening, which 
was lighted up for public worship. He lifted 
up his heart to God in prayer, while he said 
to himself, " I am not worthy to enter into 
the church, but I may perhaps venture to go 
and stand at the porch" He went, and lis- 
tened to the minister, who had begun his ser- 
mon. There was something in it which 
suited his case. The minister spoke of the 
mercy of God in Christ to repentant sinners. 
The word came home to his soul with power, 
through the influence of the Holy Spirit: 
tears started into his eyes ; he wept over his 



46 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

sins, and he wept to think that there should 
be mercy for so vile an offender. He wept to 
think of that Man of Sorrows whom he had 
persecuted. Again he prayed, and ventured 
to hope for pardon through the atoning blood 
of the Saviour of sinners. In him the pro- 
mise was fulfilled : " Whatsoever ye shall ask 
the Father in my name, ye shall receive. " 
Having had much forgiven, he loved much, 
became a happy follower of Christ in the 
way to heaven, and lived for years to adorn 
the Gospel which he now fully believed. 



THE SAVED SAILOR. 

Some years since, an evangelical clergyman 
being in his study, a sailor knocked at the 
door, and, on being admitted, said, " I sup- 
pose, sir, you have forgotten me ?" " Yes," 
said the minister, " I have, if I ever knew 
you." " Do you remember, sir, a wicked 
boy (a Sunday-school scholar) named James 

S ?" "0 yes," he replied, "I have 

cause to remember him ; he gave me uncom- 
mon trouble and anxiety. — What do you 
know of him ?" " I am the lad, sir." " In- 
deed ! you are so grown and so altered, I 
could not have believed it. Well, James, 
what account can you give of yourself?" 
"A very poor one, sir. When I was expelled 



GOD DISPLAYED. 47 

from school, I wandered about, scarcely know- 
ing or caring where. At length I found my- 
self by the sea-side. Weary of living by 
lying and stealing, and weary of myself, I got 
on board a ship, and after sailing in various 
parts of the world, I was shipwrecked during 
a hurricane in the bay of Honduras. After 
swimming till my strength failed me, I gave 
myself up for lost. In the middle of a dark 
night, I came to my senses, and found myself 
on a rock half covered with water. I looked 
around, and called for my shipmates, and 
found that two of them were circumstanced 
like myself, every moment expecting a wa- 
tery grave. For the first time after I left the 
school, you, sir, darted into my mind, I 
thought of your kindness, of my base ingrati- 
tude, and of some of the sacred truths you 
took so much pains to fix in my mind, par- 
ticularly that passage in Numbers xxiii. 9 : 
'From the top of the rocks I see him? In 
my extremity, I looked to the Saviour of 
whom I had heard so much, but whom I 
had so long slighted and despised. I knelt 
down, up to my waist in water, and cried 
mightily that God would be t the rock of my 
strength, and my portion for ever.' I found 
your words true, sir, that { praying breath is 
never spent in vain.' On the day breaking, 
we discovered some pieces of wreck, on 
which we succeeded in reaching the shore. 
Then many of the precious truths you had 
taught me from the Bible came fresh to my 
memory, though I had almost forgotten, dur- 



4S THE PROVIDENCE OF 

ing my career of iniquity, even that there 
was such a book. I thought, sir, you would 
be glad to know that all your care and 
anxiety on my behalf were not lost. I there- 
fore walked from my ship all this way, to 
thank you in the best manner I can for your 
former kindness." 

This interesting and well-accredited fact 
cannot fail to encourage ministers of the gos- 
pel, amidst their labours and anxieties, still 
to " sow in hope," although they may often 
be called to "water with tears" the seed 
sown ; and Sunday school teachers also, to 
be " always abounding in the work of the 
Lord," being assured that " their labour shall 
not be in vain in the Lord." 



" NOW THEY ARE SAFE." 

Hugh Kennedy, provost of Ayr, was a dis- 
tinguished servant of Christ ; a man mighty 
in prayer. On one occasion, while the mer- 
chant ships sailed from the town of Ayr, on 
board one of which his son was, who, like 
his father, was eminently pious, his mind was 
deeply impressed that the ship was in dan- 
ger, and, rising before daylight, he hasted to 
the house of his friend, Mr. John Steward, 
and desired he would rise, and accompany 
him to a retired apartment. Having entered 



GOD DISPLAYED. 49 

it, he thus addressed his friend : — " It is no 
time to linger, let us instantly pray. My 
son, with the rest of our friends who are at 
sea, are at this hour on the very point of 
perishing." They accordingly united in fer- 
vent supplication at the throne of grace. Mr. 
Kennedy then rose, and with a cheerful coun- 
tenance, addressed his friend, saying, "noiv 
they are safe" Mr. Steward was surprised 
at his expression, and carefully noted the day 
and hour of the circumstance. Upon the 
return of the ships, he made minute inquiry 
concerning the dangers, &c, to which they 
had been exposed, and learned, that at the 
very hour of the night on which his friend, 
Mr. Kennedy, had called him up, they were 
to ail appearances in so dangerous a situation 
that all hope of deliverance was given up, 
when, by an extraordinary and unexpected 
providence, they were preserved.* 



THE FRIAR CONVERTED. 

The celebrated Mr. Welch having escaped 
from prison, into which he had been cast, 
with several other ministers, by order of 
James VI., because they refused submission 

* See "Fleming's Fulfilling of the Scriptures," pub- 
lished by the Presbyterian Board of Publication for 
several other remarkable answers to prayer. 
5 



50 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

to his measures in ecclesiastical affairs, went 
over to France, and became minister to a 
congregation in one of the villages there. One 
evening, a popish priest who was travelling 
through the country was benighted, and 
because no other accommodation could be 
obtained by him, he was obliged, although 
much against his will, to submit to ask a 
lodging for the night in the house of Mr. 
Welch. His request was cheerfully granted ; 
he was courteously entertained, and after 
supper retired to rest. Between the friar's 
chamber and Mr. Welch's there was only a 
thin partition. During the night he awoke, 
and was surprised to hear a continual whis- 
pering noise, which both perplexed and 
alarmed him. The next morning when 
walking in the fields, he met a countryman, 
who, recognizing him by his habit, saluted 
him, and asked where he had lodged on the 
previous night. He answered, at the Hugue- 
not minister's. The countryman inquired 
what entertainment he had received. The 
friar answered, " Very bad ; for," he con- 
tinued, " I had always held that devils haunted 
the houses of these ministers, and I am per- 
suaded there was one with me last night : 
a continued whispering saluted my ears 
the whole night, which I believe was no 
other than the minister and the devil con- 
versing together." — " Indeed, sir," rejoined 
the countryman, " you are much mistaken ; 
what you heard was only the minister at his 
nightly prayers." — " Prayers !" exclaimed 



GOD DISPLAYED. 51 

the friar, " does that minister pray then ?" — 
" Yes," replied the countryman, " more than 
any man in France, and if you please to stay 
another night with him, you may be satis- 
fied/' He determined to do so, and having 
reached Mr. Welch's house, feigned illness, 
and solicited another night's lodging, and it 
was granted. Before dinner Mr. Wei h 
came from his chamber, and, according to 
his custom, proceeded with his family exer- 
cises. First, he sang a psalm, read a portion 
of the w T ord of God, and expounded it, and 
afterwards prayed with great fervour ; all 
which the friar beheld with astonishment. 
The evening came, and the same service 
took place as before dinner, at which the 
friar felt more astonished than before. The 
family then retired to rest; but the friar, 
determining to know what this night-whisper 
was, sat up, and at midnight it commenced. 
With a full determination not to be deceived, 
he crept silently to the door of his room, 
where he not only heard the sound, but could 
distinguish the words which were employed, 
and learned that communion was held by 
his host with heaven, such as he had con- 
ceived to be impossible. 

On the following morning, as soon as Mr. 
Welch appeared, the friar met him, acknow- 
ledged his ignorance, deplored that he had 
lived in darkness all his days, and said he 
now purposed, by the help of God, to declare 
himself a Protestant, and place himself un- 



52 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

der the instructions of Mr. Welch. He did 
so, and lived to display his sincerity until 
his death. 



SEASONABLE RELIEF. 

The following incident in the life of Mr. 
Thomas Cranfield, proves the efficacy of 
prayer : 

The year 17S9 was one of peculiar suffer- 
ing, owing to a great stagnation of business. 
His children frequently cried for bread, when 
there was none to give them. His distress 
of mind, under such circumstances, can only 
be conceived by those who have endured the 
like affliction ; but he was enabled to wrestle 
hard with God in prayer, and he found him 
faithful to his word of promise — « Call upon 
me in the day of trouble, and I will deliver 
thee." Sometimes, however, when his mind 
was filled with doubts and fears, his affec- 
tionate wife would inspire him with fresh 
confidence, by bidding him to remember the 
goodness of the Lord towards them in former 
days, and would repeat to him the verse — 

u His love in times past forbids me to think 

He '11 leave me at last in trouble to sink ; 

Each sweet Ebenezer I have in review, 

Confirms his good pleasure to help me quite through." 

On one of these occasions he had remained 



GOD DISPLAYED. 53 

at home the whole of the morning, praying 
with his wife and children. Dinner time 
arrived, but they had no food to place upon 
the table. His confidence in God was, how- 
ever, unabated. " Let us pray again," he 
said, et for the Lord ivill answer prayer." 
They did so, and had scarcely arisen from 
their knees, when a knock was heard at the 
door. It was a female friend, a pious woman, 
who owed him a shilling. " Come in," said 
Mr. C, " thou blessed of the Lord, 1 know 
what you are come for." " Do you ?" said 
she ; " then that is almost more than I know." 
"Why," he replied, "you have got some 
money for me. I am in necessity, and the 
Lord has sent you to relieve me." " Well," 
said the woman, " that is singular enough. I 
was sitting at home by myself, when the 
thought struck me, that I would go and see 
Mr. Cranfield. I had got part of the way 
on my journey, when I remembered that I 
owed you a shilling, so I returned back for 
it, and," presenting him with it, " here it is." 
" There !" said he to his wife, " what a blessed 
thing it is to live by faith upon the Son of 
God ! W T ho ever trusted in him, and was 
confounded ?" 

This incident he used frequently to relate 
in his old age, for the encouragement of those 
who were cast down by reason of the diffi- 
culties that surrounded them, and to show 
them the importance and advantages of con- 
tinuing instant in prayer. 
5* 



54 THE PROVIDENCE OF 



SUPPLIES FURNISHED. 

" About June, 1701," writes the pious Franke, 
" our stock beginning to decay, our prayers 
were put up to God; when a person, who 
would not be known, presented us with 
twenty-five crowns, and a geueral paid down 
the sum of one hundred crowns, which was 
followed by a gift of six, sent by a professor 
of divinity. When all this was not sufficient 
to defray the necessary expenses, I just then 
received two letters of advice by post, in one 
of which I was told that two hundred and 
fifty crowns should be paid down for the 
hospital. This sum came from a certain doc- 
tor of physic beyond sea. The other pro- 
mised seventy crowns, which were collected 
in a charity-box, far from the place, by some 
friends, for the relief of the house. Oh, how 
faithful is God ! what encouragement for 
prayer I" 



SAFETY IN A STORM. 

" August 16, 1821. — Last night has been one 
of horrors and deliverances, beyond all that 
we have yet experienced. 

" We had retired to rest as usual, though 
few could sleep on account of the creaking 
and rocking of the vessel, the yelling of the 



GOD DISPLAYED. 55 

winds, and the roaring of the waves. About 
one o'clock, Mr. Bennet heard a tremendous 
explosion or crack, as though the ship had 
been violently disrupted, or all her timbers 
compressed together by some inconceivable 
force, a hideous glare of light at the same 
time bursting through the bull's eye above, 
through the darkness. Instantly afterwards 
he heard the Captain calling out of the cabin 
below, with vehemence, the two names of 
the deputation, — i Mr. Tyerman ! Mr. Ben- 
net ! did you hear ? — did you hear that ? 
Oh, pray to God for us ! Ail is over ! all is 
over ! Lord, have mercy upon us all !' 

" A second time, before Mr. Bennet could 
answer, the terrible light flashed, like a mo- 
mentary conflagration of ail around, and a 
louder peal of thunder than before accom- 
panied the blaze, followed by what seemed 
to be the sea itself rushing in cataracts be- 
tween decks. This, however, proved to be 
a storm of hail, the stones of which were as 
large as pigeon's eggs, and severely smote 
the faces and hands of those above who 
were personally exposed to it. Again the 
captain cried out, — < It Ts now all over ! 
Pray, pray for us ! Lord, have mercy upon 
us !" 

" Mr. Tyerman and Mr. Jones, who had 
been asleep, now came running from their 
berths, inquiring what was the nature of the 
occurrences, and what harm had been sus- 
tained. Just then, a third flash of lightning 
and a crack of thunder — the one more faint, 



56 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

the other less deafening than before, and 
with four distinct pulsations between them, 
gave token that the danger, though still near 
us, might be passing away. 

" The chief mate, whose watch it was upon 
deck, now informed us that the hurricane 
began about nine o'clock, but that it had not 
reached its crisis till towards one, when we 
first distinguished the voice of the thunder 
from the wailing of the wind, and the boom- 
ing of the waves ; and when that dreadful 
shock convulsed the vessel, which convinced 
the captain that it must have been fatally- 
struck, as at the same time he heard the ex- 
pression aloud, < The pumps are of no use 
now.' The mate said that this first great 
flash heated his face, and he felt as if stunned 
for a moment or two, the sulphureous flame 
appearing to run down his jacket sleeve. 
The second peal was accompanied by a 
crimson blaze, which was instantaneously 
followed by the tempest of hail, pouring like 
shot upon himself and his terrified comrades, 
who (to use his own expression) crowded 
about him like a flock of sheep, and could 
hardly be persuaded to quit his side on the 
necessary duties of the ship. He observed 
that the maintop-sail had happily been taken 
in before the squall, or it must inevitably 
have been carried away, and perhaps have 
involved the destruction of the vessel with 
all on board. This he thought a very provi- 
dential act, for he had only done it under 
an impression which urged him, as if 



GOD DISPLAYED. 57 

he had heard a voice saying, f Take it 
in ! — take it in ! — take in the maintop- 
sail V The Lord,, however, so ordered 
it, that, amidst all these perils, not a mast 
was sprung or struck, not a sail carried away 
or ripped, not a timber suffered damage, not 
a life was lost, nor limb injured of either 
passengers or crew. 

" The captain was powerfully affected 
with the terrors and mercies of the night. 
He said, that on the preceding evening, when 
he returned to the cabin from deck, he read 
a portion of Scripture before lying down in 
his cot, when these words were deeply im- 
pressed upon his heart, < Jesus answered 
them, Do ye now believe?' 

" Oh that both he and we, and our fellow- 
voyagers, may have grace to profit as we 
ought by this display of divine goodness to- 
wards us ; and, more fully than ever before, 
to consecrate ourselves body and soul, for 
time and eternity, to his service ! May he 
give to each of us that spiritual discernment 
and understanding, * 

' Which hears the mighty voice of God, 

And ponders what he saith ; 
His word and works, his gifts and rod, 

Have each a voice to faith.' " 

[Tyerman and Bennefs Journal] 



THE SNARE BROKEN. 

A person belonging to the congregation of a 
respectable clergyman in the neighbourhood 



58 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

of London, had been for some time con- 
fined by sickness, and had been reading a 
particular tract from which he had received 
great benefit. An acquaintance visited him 
just at this period, and, from some hints that 
he dropped, appeared to be labouring under 
great depression of mind. His sick friend 
pointed to the tract lying on the table, in the 
perusal of which himself had been benefitted, 
and requested him to sit down and read it to 
him. The visitor assented, and had not pro- 
ceeded far before his whole attention became 
absorbed by the contents of the tract. As he 
read on, his heart became more and more 
affected : at length unable to control his feel- 
ings, he burst into tears, and, pulling a 
weapon of destruction out of his pocket, 
threw it upon the floor, exclaiming, " With 
that weapon I was just going to take away 
my own life, — but thought I would first look 
in to see you once more before I committed 
the horrid deed. What I have now been 
reading has saved me !" 

Reader ! are you a distributor of tracts ? 
Let this affecting and interesting case en- 
courage you liberally to scatter these silent, 
yet powerful preachers of righteousness ; and 
accompany your distribution with fervent 
prayer, that they may be the means of lead- 
ing sinners to the Lord Jesus Christ for life 
and salvation. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 59 



DOUBLE DELIVERANCE. 

The life of the late Major-General Burn is 
replete with incidents of the most interesting 
nature. He has exemplified the adage," He 
that notes providences will never want a 
providence to note." On one occasion, after 
referring to a dangerous sickness under which 
he had laboured, but from which he had 
been almost miraculously raised, when others 
were dying round him of the same complaint, 
and when himself had been given over, he 
piously observes : — 

" Oh, what a mercy that I did not die 
then ! where would my soul now have been? 
Surely not contemplating, as I trust it does 
with some degree of thankfulness, the immi- 
nent danger it has escaped ! When I was to 
all appearances breathing my last, the sur- 
geon of the ship administered a medicine, 
which God so singularly blessed, that it gave 
a sudden and favourable turn to the disorder, 
and in a few days I was pronounced out of 
danger. The first time I got out of my ham- 
mock to make my bed, I found a large scor- 
pion in it, which had probably lain there a 
considerable time, and yet had not stung 
me. 

" Such instances as these may be thought 
by some too trivial to be mentioned ; but I 
trust I shall ever be enabled to look upon my 
deliverance from danger of this and every 
other kind as the secret but certain effects of 



60 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

that overruling Providence to whose care I 
thankfully acknowledge myself indebted for 
my present safety." 



PROVIDENTIAL ACCIDENT. 

A remarkable instance of the sovereignty 
and power of Divine grace in the conversion 
of Mr. Morgan Howell, of Cardiganshire, 
Wales, under the ministry of the Rev. W. 
Cradock, is given in the account furnished of 
that gentleman. 

A person who lived near the spot where 
he preached when he visited that country, 
was particularly opposed to his doctrine and 
ministry; he ridiculed him in his conversa- 
tion, made a mock of him in verses which 
he published, and opposed his preaching by 
all means in his power. 

In the order of God's purpose it occurred, 
that on one occasion, when Mr. Cradock was 
preaching in the open field, (the place where 
he intended to speak in not being large 
enough for the hearers.) Mr. Morgan 
Howell, which was the gentleman's name, 
got together a foot-ball play, in order to in- 
terrupt Mr. Cradock, and went so far as to 
endeavour to strike the ball against him ; but 
being prevented, and falling, he so sprained 
his ankle that he could not move, and was 



GOD DISPLAYED. 61 

thus compelled to hear the sermon, which 
was overruled by God to his conversion, and 
as an evidence of its reality, (as in the case 
of Lydia to Paul,) he took him to his house, 
received him whenever he came into the 
country, and at length becoming himself a 
teacher of the way of salvation, established 
the first church of believers in his neighbour- 
hood. 



TRANSFORMATION. 

" I one evening," says a minister of Bris- 
tol, " passed a man in West-street, who was 
delivering a load of coals. Several women 
of a dissolute appearance were standing near 
his cart. He attracted my attention by the 
horrid oaths he uttered. Having in my 
pocket a tract called < The Swearer's Prayer? 
I presented it to him. He asked, < What is 
that?' I answered, < Something to do you 
good.' He said, ? I don't want it.' When 
one of the women said, « Take it, Jack, it 
may do you good.' He attended to the ad- 
vice of the woman, and took it. Some 
months after, a woman stopped me in the 
street, and said, < Do you recollect, sir, giving 
a man, who was delivering coals in West 
street some time ago, a little book ?' At first 
I did not recollect it ; but, after she had men- 
tioned some circumstances, it was brought to 
6 



62 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

my remembrance. < Oh ! sir,' said she, 'I 
have reason to be thankful to God and you 
for that little book ; he has never sworn an 
oath since ; he never gets drunk now ; he 
never beats me ; but he daily reads his Bible, 
and is become quite a sober, religious man. 
He takes his family to chapel every sabbath- 
day, and he is not only altered thus, but ive 
are all benefitted by that little book." 



POOR CALEB; OR, THE EFFICACY OF PRAYER. 

Dr. Joseph Stennet resided in Wales seve- 
ral years, and preached to a congregation in 
Abergavenny. There was a poor man, a 
regular attendant on his ministry, who was 
generally known by the name of Caleb ; he 
was a collier, and lived among the hills, be- 
tween Abergavenny and Hereford ; had a 
wife and several small children, and walked 
seven or eight miles every Sabbath to hear 
the Doctor. He was a very pious man ; his 
knowledge and understanding were remark- 
able, considering his situation and circum- 
stances. Bad weather seldom hindered Caleb's 
attendance at the house of God, but there was 
a severe frost one winter which lasted many 
weeks, and blocked up his way that he could 
not possibly pass without danger, neither 
could he work for the support of his family. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 63 

The Doctor and others were concerned lest 
they should perish for want ; however, no 
sooner was the frost broken than Caleb ap- 
peared again. Dr. S. spied, him, and as soon 
as the service was ended, went to him and 
said, " 0, Caleb, how glad I am to see you ; 
how have you done during the severity of 
the weather ?" Caleb cheerfully answered, 
" Never better in all my life. I not only had 
necessaries, but lived upon dainties the whole 
of the time, and have some still remaining." 
Caleb then told the Doctor, that one night 
soon after the commencement of the frost, 
they had eaten up all their stock, and not one 
morsel left for the morning, nor any human 
possibility of getting any ; but he found his 
mind quite composed, relying on a provident 
God, who wanted neither power nor means 
to supply his wants. He went to prayer with 
his family, and then to rest, and slept soundly 
till morning. Before he was up he heard a 
knock at his door ; he went and saw a man 
standing with a horse loaded, who asked if 
his name was Caleb. He answered in the 
affirmative : the man desired him to help him 
to take down the load. Caleb asked what it 
was. He said, Provision. On his inquiring 
who sent it, the man said, he believed God 
had sent it ; no other answer could he obtain. 
When he came to examine the contents, he 
was struck with amazement at the quantity 
and variety of the articles — bread, flour, oat- 
meal, butter, cheese, salt meat and fresh, &c, 
&c., which served them through the frost, and 



64 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

some remaining to that present time. The 
Doctor was much affected with the account, 
and afterwards mentioned it in hopes of find- 
ing out the benevolent donor ; but in vain, 
till about two 3 r ears afterward he went to 
visit Dr. Talbot, a noted physician in the city 
of Hereford. This Dr. T. was a man of 
good moral character, and generous disposi- 
tion, but an infidel in principle. His wife was 
a gracious woman, and a member of the 
church. Dr. Stennet used to go and visit 
her now and then ; and Dr. Talbot, though 
a man of no religion himself, always received 
Dr. S. with great politeness. As they were 
conversing pleasantly one ev ling, Dr. S. 
thought it his duty to introd^e something 
that was entertaining and profitable. He 
spoke of the great efficacy of prayer, and 
instanced the circumstances of poor Caleb. 
Dr. Talbot smiled and said, " Caleb ! I shall 
never forget him as long as I live." What, 
did you know him?" said Dr. S. "I had 
but very little knowledge of him," said Dr. 
T., " but I know he must be the same man 
you mean." Then Dr. Talbot related the 
following circumstances. He said, u the sum- 
mer before the hard winter, above mentioned, 
ha was riding on horseback, as was his usual 
custom when he had a leisure hour, and 
generally chose to ride among the hills, it 
being more pleasant and rural. As he was 
riding along, he observed a mimber of people 
assembled in a barn: ! fode up to the door 
to learn the cause, when he found, to his sur 



GOD DISPLAYED. 65 

prise, that there was a man preaching to a 
vast number of people. He stopped, and ob- 
served that they were very attentive to what 
the preacher delivered. One poor man in 
particular attracted his notice, who had a lit- 
tle Bible in his hand, turning to every pas- 
sage of Scripture the minister quoted. He 
wondered to see how ready a man of his 
appearance was in turning to the places, 
When the service was over, he walked his 
horse gently along, and the poor man whom 
he so particularly noticed, happened to walk 
by his side. The Doctor asked him many 
questions concerning the meeting and minis- 
ter, and found him very intelligent. He in- 
quired also about himself — his employment — 
his family — and his name, which he said was 
Caleb. After the Doctor had satisfied his 
curiosity, he rode off, thought no more about 
him till the great frost came the following 
winter. He was one night in bed, he could 
not tell, for certain, whether he was asleep or 
awake, but thought he heard a voice say, 
" Send provision to Caleb." He was a little 
startled at first, but concluding it to be a 
dream, he endeavoured to compose himself 
to sleep. It was not long before he heard the 
same words repeated, but louder and strong- 
er. Then he awoke his wife, and told her 
what he had heard, but she thought it could 
be no other than a dream, and she fell asleep 
again. But the Doctor's mind was so im- 
pressed that he could not sleep ; at last he 
heard the voice so powerful, saying, " Get 
6* 



66 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

up, and send provision to Caleb," that he 
could resist no longer. He got up, and called 
his man, bid him bring his horse, and he 
went to his larder, and stuffed a pair of pan- 
niers as full as he could of whatever he could 
find, and having assisted the man to lade the 
horse, he bid him take the provision to Caleb. 

* Caleb, sir?" said the man, "who is Caleb?" 
" I know very little of him," said the Doctor, 
" but that his name is Caleb ; he is a collier, 
and lives among the hills; let the horse go, 
and you will be sure to find him." The man 
seemed to be under the same influence as his 
master, which accounts for his telling Caleb 

* God sent it, I believe." 



A FRIEND AND MONITOR. 

In the days >f Oliver Cromwell every soldier 
was furnished with a pocket Bible. One 
young man, although not accustomed to de- 
votional exercises, placed his Bible in his 
pocket upon his breast, when, during the 
action, while the enemy was firing upon 
them, he was made to reel backwards ; but 
recovering his former position, and feeling 
no pain, he proceeded to load and fire, &c:, 
until victory crowned the day ; then, finding 
himself at leisure, he took out his Bible, and 
was surprised to find that a ball had passed 



GOD DISPLAYED. 67 

the cover; then, tracing it through several 
books, till he came to the book of Ecclesias- 
tes, he found it had stopped at these words — 
<- Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth : and 
let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy 
youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, 
and hi the sight of thine eyes : but know 
thou, that for all these things God will 
bring thee into judgment." He became 
much affected, as might be expected, from 
that singular occurrence, and began to judge 
himself ; confessed and forsook his sins, and 
found mercy. 



THE MAD BULL. 

"I was proceeding," says Sir W. Scott, "from 
the old town (Edinburgh) to the new, by the 
earthen mound, at the head of which I was 
led for a few minutes to look at a bull that 
had got into an enclosure there, after the 
unmerciful butcher lads had driven it fairly 
mad. The crowd that gathered on the out- 
side of the fence increased the brute's fierce- 
ness. At length they began to cast ropes 
over its horns and around its neck, thereby 
to pull it to a strong hold, that it might be 
slain in the place where it was, which drove 
it to its most desperate fury. Its eyes now 
glared madness ; there were handfuls of foam 
flying from its mouth ; with its fore feet it 



68 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

pawed the ground, throwing lumps of earth 
as high as the adjoining houses, and it bel- 
lowed so as to make one quake. It was 
anything but an agreeable sight, so I moved 
away homewards. But before I got to the 
foot of the mound, an alarming shout caused 
me to look back, when I perceived the ani- 
mal at no great distance behind me, coming 
on with all its rage. I had just time to spring 
to the top of the wall that lined the footpath, 
and to behold its future progress. 

" I shudder at this hour when I think of 
what I immediately saw. Among the peo- 
ple that were near me and in jeopardy, was 
a young lady. She wore a red mantle, 
which is a very offensive colour to many of 
the brute creation. As I did, she also made 
for the wall, but had neither time nor 
strength to gain its top, ere the infuriated 
animal drove towards her. She turned her 
back, however, to the inaccessible eminence, 
as if to see the full extent of her fate, and 
then stood as nailed to it, save only her arms, 
which she threw aloft in her despair, which 
would indeed have been as fragile in defence 
as a rotten reed. Her tender body would 
have been nothing against a force that could 
have broken bars of brass, and horns that 
might have transfixed an animal of its own 
size. As I have said, directly towards the 
unprotected young lady the bull drove for- 
ward; with intentest eye he came on, he 
mistook his mark not an inch : for, as the 
multitude veiled behind him their horror, he 



GOD DISPLAYEDc 69 

dashed with prodigious strength and madness 
at her. 

" Was it not a miracle that the dear young 
woman escaped unhurt and untouched? Yet 
it is true : for the terrific animal struck at her 
so accurately, that a horn smote the dead 
wall on either hand, thus embracing her, but 
from their great length shielding her person 
from even the slightest damage. But the 
staunch wall withstood the tremendous thrust, 
and sent back with rebounding force, to a 
considerable distance, the huge and terrible 
brute, throwing him prostrate, never to rise 
again : for numberless destructive weapons 
were plunged into him, before he had time 
to recover from the recoil." 



ALL FOR THE BEST. 

The pious Rev. Bernard Gilpin, after being 
presented with the rectory of Essingdon, by 
Tunstal, Bishop of London, proceeded faith- 
fully to the discharge of the duties connected 
with his office. He reproved sharply the 
vices which then reigned in the Church, and 
fearlessly insisted on the rejected doctrine of 
justification by faith. The consequence 
was, that a host of enemies rose up against 
him, and he was condemned to be burned at 
the stake for a heretic. 



70 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

His friends earnestly besought him, before 
his apprehension, to seek safety by flight. 
But he begged them not to press him longer 
on that subject. " Be assured," he observed, 
" I should never have thrown myself volun- 
tarily into the hands of my enemies ; but I 
am fully determined to persevere in doing 
my duty, and I shall take no measures to 
avoid them." In a few days the messen- 
gers apprehended him, and he was borne 
from his friends. 

In his way to London he broke his leg, 
which put a stop for a while to his journey. 
The persons in whose custody he was, took 
occasion from this circumstance to retort 
upon him an observation which he frequently 
used : « That nothing happens to us but what 
is intended for good ;" asking him whether 
he thought his broken leg was so ? He an- 
swered meekly, " He made no question but 
it was." And indeed so it proved, for, be- 
fore he was able to travel to London, Queen 
Mary died. Being thus providentially res- 
cued, he returned to Houghton through 
crowds of people, expressing the utmost joy, 
and blessing God for his deliverance. 



MERCIFUL DETENTION. 

The Rev. John Newton, in his interesting 
" Letters and Conversational Remarks," ob- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 71 

serves : " God sends little trials to prevent 
greater. I knew a family," he continues, 
" who were going to India, and had secured 
their passage on board an Indiaman. They 
were happy that they were to go in so good 
a ship, in so good a cabin, with so agree- 
able a captain, and so pleasant a company. 
They received a letter from Portsmouth, in- 
forming them that they must join the ship on 
a certain day, which was specified. They 
left London in time to spend two or three 
days with their friends on the road down. 
These friends prevailed on them to stay two 
or three days beyond the time fixed, assuring 
them that an Indiaman, going upon a voyage 
of two or three years, would never keep to 
the very day of sailing, perhaps not to a 
week. 

" On their arrival at Portsmouth, they 
found, to their great mortification, that the 
ship had sailed, and was just getting out of 
sight. They returned to London greatly de- 
jected ; but in a few days they heard the 
news of the total loss of the ship in which 
they were to have sailed, (the Halsewell,) 
which was wrecked on the coast of Corn- 
wall, and most of those on board perished. 
Here they had to admire the Providence that 
detained them. Their losing their passage 
was a little trial, but it prevented a much 
greater, — the loss of their lives." 



72 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

A MYSTERIOUS PROVIDENCE. 

The following highly interesting fact is fur- 
nished by a gentleman of some notoriety 
and long standing in the religious world, 
whose habits of sober thinking and high 
respectability are a sufficient guaranty for its 
correctness : — 

" Fourteen years of the earlier part of my 
life were spent in a merchant's counting- 
house. The whole of the concern was 
under my management. We were in the 
habit of frequently shipping goods for Ire- 
land. At one time I had to purchase a quan- 
tity of madder for that trade, and I went to 
the importer about it. He was not at home, 
neither was there a clerk in his counting- 
house. Being very anxious to see some one 
to settle about the shipment, I went into his 
warehouse, and carefully looked for his ser- 
vants, but could not find a single individual. 
As I was leaving the warehouse, I saw 
what I conceived to be a case of beautiful 
Havana sugar, and taking up a lump of 
about an ounce weight, put it into my mouth. 
Its sweetness would have induced me to 
swallow the whole, had not a man started up 
within two yards of me, and with a loud 
voice said, < Spit that out, or you will be a 
dead man. It is sugar of lead P I did not 
require a second command, but immediately 
discharged th° poison : but fearing I might 
have swallowed enough to destroy me, I 
went immediately to a chemist's shop and 



GOD DISPLAYED. 73 

took an emetic, and then hasted home, wait- 
ing with considerable anxiety its operating. 
I need not tell you that, through the mercy 
of God, I was preserved from death ; but the 
singularity of this preservation has made a 
lasting impression upon my mind, although 
the circumstance took place about thirty 
years ago. My anxiety to meet with some 
person, that I might attend to the business I 
was upon, was so very great, that I was par- 
ticular in searching every part of the ware- 
house ; and if I had been asked, could con- 
scientiously have made the most solemn and 
positive affirmation there was no person there. 
Who my monitor was, whence he came, or 
what his business could have been there, I 
never could learn ; and that he should have 
risen up so near ?ne, and yet not be discov- 
ered by me until the moment of my putting 
the deadly sweet into my mouth, is a fact for 
which I cannot account." 



GRATEFUL RETROSPECTION. 

The pious and estimable author of the " Re- 
trospect," while a lieutenant in the nav}^ 
was the subject of many remarkable deliver- 
ances, of which he has made grateful men- 
tion ; among them is the following : — 

" Having anchored off the coast of Suffolk, 



74 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

We had returned to the beach, waiting the 
arrival of the boat. The roar of noisy mirth 
had ceased, and I at length became thought- 
ful, for I had greatly sinned against light and 
conscience that day. As I was passing the 
shore, thirty or forty yards from the main 
body of my companions, one of them levelled 
his gun. I noticed him, and that his aim was 
well adjusted for my head, if he had any 
design to shoot me. Scarcely had the thought 
passed my mind, before he fired ! when, feel- 
ing my hat jerk, I took it off, and, to my sur- 
prise, found the contents of the piece had en- 
tered the crown, right in front ; passed over 
the sealp of my head, and escaped through 
the back part of the hat. It appeared on in- 
quiry, that he had loaded with a pebble- 
stone, the size of a musket-ball, which he 
foolishly supposed would fly to dust as soon 
as it escaped the barrel of the piece. When 
I saw how near I had been to the eternal 
world, I could not help saying, c Surely this 
is the voice of God ;' and under this impres- 
sion, I sat silent in the boat during the greater 
part of our way to the ship." 



THE LITTLE GIRL IN THE MINE. 

It has been well said, that "prayer and pains 
will do great things ;" in other words, we 



GOD DISPLAYED. 75 

must and ought to do our best in all we at- 
tempt, and yet feel that we leave the most 
needful thing undone, if we forget to look to 
God for his blessing. Without it, nothing 
that we can do is strong, nothing is wise, no- 
thing is holy. In short, prayer, and the use 
of the best means, must ever go hand in hand, 
if we wish for success. This good rule, while 
it is useful in small and every day concerns, 
will apply too to that which is above them 
all — the safety of the soul. Would we be 
saved, we must seek, nay, strive to enter into 
the way of life by the" narrow gate of true 
sorrow for sin, and simple faith in Christ, and 
yet we must pray for pardon and life, and 
expect them as the free gift of God. 

In former days, there were in the town of 
Saalfleld in Germany many more mines than 
there are at present ; but not a few of those 
that are no longer used, are still there, and 
many a house stands over a shaft, or entrance 
to a mine. A shaft is a very deep hole, 
deeper than the height of the tallest steeple. 

There was a shaft of this kind in the cellar 
of a house in which a widow lived with her 
daughter, a child of about seven years of age. 
The mouth of the shaft was covered with 
boards, and no one thought of any danger. 

One summer's day, the widow sent her 
child into the cellar to fetch a jug of cider. 
The child being rather afraid of the dark cel- 
lar, sprang into it with haste; and just as she 
had laid hold of the jug, the boards laid over 
the shaft, on which she stood, gave way in a 



76 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

moment, and she sank with a loud cry into 
the deep pit. Her mother, just at that time 
in the kitchen, heard as she thought the cry 
of her child : she went at once with a light 
into the cellar, and as she saw nothing of her 
child, but found the hole into the shaft open, 
she trembled so much from fear, that she al- 
most fell into the pit after her poor little girl. 

She ran up the steps and called out for 
help. She was at last heard by some women 
who lived near. It being harvest time, most 
of the people were busy in the fields : they 
ran to the spot, looked down into the dark 
pit, and wrung their hands, but knew not 
how to give any help. All at once, the child 
was heard calling out of the gloomy pit, u Oh, 
help me ! help me ! but quickly ! quickly !" 

A hook on one side of the shaft, to which 
in former times a ladder, it is very likely, had 
been fixed, had caught the girl's sash while 
she was falling, and by this the poor child 
hung. When those who stood above heard 
that she was still alive, and yet knew not 
how to help her, their cries of distress grew 
louder. 

And now more persons came round the 
shaft, but none of them could advise what 
was to be done. An old man at last drew 
near. He began to make the mouth of the 
shaft wider ; he fetched a miner's windlass, 
to which a bucket was attached ; — but all 
this, though done with haste, took up much 
time. 

The old miner said little, but prayed in a 



GOD DISPLAYED. 77 

low voice by himself to God; and when 
every thing was ready for his going down 
the shaft, he once more placed himself in his 
Saviour's care, and got into the bucket with 
a miner's lamp. He was let down slowly, 
and with great care. The child saw the 
light drawing near her. She lifted up her 
little hands, and the same moment the jug 
which she had held till now, fell from her 
hands, and from rock to rock, into the depth 
below. Those who stood above were once 
more full of fear, and were now still as death. 
The old miner was soon so near the child, 
that she could see him. He spoke to her, 
tried to cheer her, told her to keep herself 
quite still, for that with the help of God he 
hoped to save her life. But the shaft grew 
more and more narrow, and the old man 
was afraid that he should not be able to pass 
the child without touching her, and if he 
came only a little too close, she might be cast 
down into the deep pit, and be dashed upon 
the rocks beneath. 

The danger was very great ; he therefore 
gave a sign not to be let further down, and 
reached the child by a rope with a noose : 
she seized hold of it, and was soon lifted up 
a little. At length she was able to touch the 
hanging bucket with one hand, and then too 
with the other. That moment, the hook by 
which the child had so long hung, gave way, 
and fell into the pit ; but the Lord helped the 
old man to keep fast hold of the rope to which 
the child clung. He lifted her into the bucket 
7* 



78 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

with himself, and called out to the people 
above, " Thank God with me ! I have got 
the child." 

Had the hook but one moment before been 
torn from the wall, the child would surely 
have fallen to the bottom of the shaft. Now 
she came up to its top ; and the good old 
man gave her to her mother, his face shining 
with joy. She took her, and would not let 
her go from her arms ; and if she loved her 
before, she was now still more dear to her, 
as she seemed given to her as one brought 
alive from the grave. 

While the story of this child shows us how 
the blessing of God rests upon prayer, joined 
to the use of the best means, it may also re- 
mind us of many high and holy things. Man, 
when he first sinned, fell into that fearful pit, 
from which he must have gone to endless 
ruin, if One both mighty and willing to help 
him had not been sent to save him. 

The rope to which the child clung with so 
tight a grasp, may teach of faith, with which 
we may lay firm hold of our hope in Christ. 
A poor dying Irish woman when asked, 
" What is faith ?" said in reply, " The grip of 
a drowning man." So let us keep fast hold 
of a hope which cannot fail us ; but which, 
in the midst of many dangers from sin, Satan, 
and the world, will bring us safely through 
them all to endless light, and life, and 
peace. 

The joy, too, of the tender mother on tak- 
ing her child once more into her arms, is but 



GOD DISPLAYED. 79 

a faint picture of the welcome which the 
saved of the Lord will meet from Him, when 
they reach the courts above. 

The Lord's own word can best show us 
what will then be His holy joy. He tells us 
by the voice of His prophet, " He will rejoice 
over thee with joy ; He will rest in His love ; 
He will joy over thee with singing." Zeph. 
hi. 17. 



THE CONVERTED SAILOR. 

Some years ago, Mr. Hamlin, one of the 
American missionaries in Constantinople, 
was passing through a street in Galata, near 
the water, when his attention was attracted 
by the crowd, and on inquiry he learned that 
an American sailor had fallen down in the 
street, and was dying of the cholera. He 
immediately made his way through the 
crowd, and found that it was even so to all 
appearance, as had been related to him. 
There lay in the middle of the street a sailor- 
boy, not more than eighteen years of age, 
apparently very near his end. Mr. Hamlin 
lost no time, but immediately procured a 
room near by, and had the individual carried 
there, at the same time sending for a physi- 
cian. God blessed the efforts so promptly 
made, and the sailor-boy recovered. It was 



SO THE PROVIDENCE OF 

a slow process, however, and during the 
two or three weeks of his convalescence, Mr. 
Hamlin and the other missionaries visited 
him frequently, and endeavoured to deal 
faithfully with his soul. He was exceed- 
ingly ignorant of the Gospel, but God shined 
into his heart by the light of his Holy Spirit, 
and he was soon an intelligent and joyful 
believer in Christ Jesus. He took passage 
to Boston in a homeward-bound vessel ; and 
he was not long on shore before he found his 
way to a prayer meeting for sailors in the 
seamen's chapel. In the course of the meet- 
ing, an opportunity was given for any one 
who pleased to offer prayer". This young 
man arose, and in the fulness and simplicity 
of his heart, for the first time in his life, be- 
came the organ of address in prayer for a 
large assembly. The beginning of his prayer 
was rather abrupt, but it was an index to the 
true feelings of his heart towards those stran- 
gers in a foreign land who had succoured 
him in the time of his distress. The first 
sentence he uttered was, " Lord God, bless 
the missionaries" This young man found, 
on reaching his home, that his parents, and 
some other of his friends, whom he had left 
in wickedness and unbelief, had been truly 
converted to God in his absence, and they 
were prepared to welcome him, as one in a 
double sense, " alive from the dead." The 
sequel of the story is, that this same sailor- 
boy who was found by the missionaries per- 
ishing in the filthy gutters of Constantinople, 



GOD DISPLAYED. 81 

is now a jjreacher of the Gospel, zealously 
labouring to bring multitudes of his fellow- 
sinners to a saving acquaintance with Christ ! 



LAND SCENTED. 

Mr. Southey, in his " History of Brazil," 
thus describes the perilous situation of Ca- 
beza de Vaca, who sailing towards Brazil, 
was preserved from shipwreck by a griiio, or 
ground -cricket : — 

When they had crossed the line, the state 
of the water was inquired into, and it was 
found that of one hundred casks there re- 
mained but three to supply four hundred 
men and thirty horses; upon this the Ade- 
lantado gave orders to make the nearest 
land. Three days they stood towards it. A 
soldier who set out in ill health, had brought 
a grillo, or ground-cricket with him from 
Cadiz, thinking to be amused by the insect's 
voice ; but it had been silent the whole way, 
to his no little disappointment. Now on the 
morning of the fourth day, the griiio began 
to ring his shrill rattle, scenting, as was im- 
mediately supposed, the land. Such was the 
miserable watch which had been kept, that, 
when looking out at this warning, they per- 
ceived high rocks within bow-shot, against 
which, had it not been for the insect, they 



S2 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

must inevitably have been lost : they had 
just time to drop anchor. From hence they 
coasted along, the grillo singing every night 
as if it had been on shore, till they reached 
the island of St. Catalina. 



THE DYING BISHOP. 

Bishop Butler, when on his death-bed, 
having sent for his chaplain, observed, that 
though he had endeavoured to avoid sin and 
please God, yet from the consciousness 
which he felt of perpetual infirmities, he was 
still afraid to die. " My lord !" said the chap- 
lain, " you have forgot that Jesus Christ is a 
Saviour !" " True," replied the bishop. 
" but how shall I know that he is a Saviour 
for me . ? " " My lord, it is written, « Him 
that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.' " 
" True," responded the worthy prelate, with 
admiration, " and I am surprised that though 
I have read that passage a thousand times 
over, I never felt its virtue till this moment, 
and now I die happy." 



INFIDELITY ABANDONED. 

The late Lord Lyttleton, author of the 
History of Henry II., and his friend, Gilbert 



GOD DISPLAYED. 83 

West, Esq., had both imbibed the principles 
of infidelity ; and had agreed together to 
write something in favour of infidelity. To 
do this more effectually, they judged it ne- 
cessary first to acquaint themselves pretty 
well with the contents of that book from 
whose pages they had turned away, and 
against whose holy doctrines they now in- 
tended to write. They accordingly turned 
to the perusal of it ; and in so doing, became 
convinced of the error of their notions, and 
the truth of the system of Christianity. Both 
became converts to the religion of Jesus 
Christ from a conviction of its divinity, and 
both employed their able pens in writing in 
its favour and praise. The former furnished 
the world with his ic Observations on the 
Conversion of St. Paul ;" the latter, with his 
" Observations on the Resurrection of Christ;" 
and both died in peace ; hence the unholy 
purpose to which Satan had excited them, 
was the very means by which they were de- 
livered from bondage the most servile and 
disgraceful, and from danger the most awful 
and certain. 



A PROVIDENTIAL WAVE. 

A vessel of North Shields sailed from that 
port bound for London. The carpenter of 



84 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

the ship alone seemed desirous of private de- 
votion ; and though often ridiculed by his 
shipmates, continued nevertheless to serve 
the Lord. In a gale of wind during the pas- 
sage, the vessel lay to off Flamborough 
Head, wind S.S.E. under close reefed top- 
sails. John, the carpenter, having nothing 
particular to call his attention for a time, 
went into the cook-house, and kneeled down 
to implore the blessing of God on the ship 
and crew. While he was engaged in this 
holy exercise a heavy sea broke over the 
deck, and suddenly hurried him overboard 
into the foaming sea. One of the crew caught a 
glimpse of him as he was going over the 
gangway, and alarmed the watch by calling 
out, " The carpenter's overboard." The con- 
sternation that seized every mind was great 
indeed when they found it impossible to ren- 
der him any assistance, as they could only 
look on the boisterous waves with trembling 
anxiety. The gale increased, and in a mo- 
ment a back sea dashed across the deck, car- 
ried away the stanchions, and left the car- 
penter on board. When John recovered, he 
found himself on his knees on board his own 
ship. The crew, seeing his miraculous de- 
liverance, cried out with astonishment, " The 
carpenter's religion is right ; he is favoured 
by God." 



GOD DISPLAYED. 85 



THE BUND SAILOR. 



The following account was related by Mr. 
Dudley, at a meeting of the Bible Society at 
Liverpool. 

"In the year 1817, I was," said he, "at 
Liverpool for the purpose of establishing a 
Sailor's Bible Society. We had met in a large 
hall, which was crowded to excess, and after 
going through the usual form of proposing a 
chairman, I rose and moved that the meeting 
should form itself into a Society, called the 
Liverpool Sailor's Bible Society, and said 
that I would not call upon any one to second 
the motion, as I was in hopes that some sailor 
present would do so. — Immediately a hollow 
voice was heard from the further end of the 
hall, saying, ' I am the fittest person under 
heaven to do so/ Our eyes were instantly 
directed towards the place whence the voice 
came, and we beheld an old blind sailor 
standing on a bench surrounded by other 
sailors : he said, i I will repeat my words, I 
am the fittest person under heaven to second 
this motion, and I will explain the reason 
why.' — Every noise was immediately hush- 
ed, our eyes were fixed on his with no small 
interest, and he began as follows : ' I entered 
upon a seafaring life very young, and was 
for many years the most abandoned charac- 
ter that any one could imagine on the face 
of the earth. At the age of twenty I was 
grown old in crime, and well versed in every 



86 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

species of iniquity. I never used to open my 
mouth but to blaspheme, and considered a 
day lost if I did not invent some new oath. 
I was the darling of the whole of the ship's 
crew, for I was the ring-leader in every sin 
which I then called pleasure, and except 
when I was engaged in it, I was never 
happy, for it was the very element in which 
I lived. I went on in this course till I was 
twenty-five, when I was in a frigate. One 
day I accompanied some of my comrades to 
the shore for water, where we had not been 
long, before the heavens grew black, the 
thunder pealed, and the lightning flashed ; 
the bolt of God was directed against me, and 
I lost my sight. My companions got me in- 
stantly into the boat, and we returned to the 
ship : the surgeon examined my eyes, I was 
pronounced incurably blind, and sent home 
on a pension. The loss of my sight seemed 
to quicken other senses for the service of sin, 
and I became, if possible, more abandoned 
than ever. It was my custom to ask those 
who visited me to read to me, and the more 
blasphemous and profane the books were, the 
better I liked them. 

" Some time after, a cousin of mine, who 
was visiting Liverpool, came to see me. He 
asked me a few questions about the loss of 
my sight ; and after that said, * I hear that 
you are fond of having people to read to 
you; if you will allow me, I will do so; 1 
have a book in my pocket.' I replied, I 
should be glad to hear him, and asked him 



GOD DISPLAYED. 87 

its name ; when he said, 6 I will not tell you 
now, but before I leave Liverpool you shall 
know it.' He read some of it, and although 
it was not like any thing I had ever heard 
before, my attention was fixed. He came the 
next day, and the day after that, and the day 
after that, till a fortnight had passed away ; 
when, for the first time in my life, I trust the 
tears of repentance trickled down my cheeks, 
and I experienced a sensation I never before 
felt. 'John,' exclaimed I, in an agony of 
mind past description ; i who is the author 
of that book ? He replied, God. I said < I 
never knew that God wrote a book.' He 
answered, < It is the Bible.' From that time, 
I trust I have felt the effects of regenerating 
grace upon my heart, and have experienced 
the love of God shed abroad in it by the 
Holy Ghost.' 

" Here the sailor ceased, and after having 
established the society, I joined him, and 
went home with him, where he confirmed 
what he before said. He lives alone in a 
small cellar, and earns eight shillings a week, 
by selling small articles of straw work, which 
he was taught to make at the Blind Asylum. 
When he receives his money at the end of 
the week, and counts it with his fingers, he 
puts one shilling aside, saying, " that is God's 
shilling ;" — two-pence of which he gives to 
the Bible Society, two-pence to the Blind 
Asylum, two-pence to the Missionary Society, 
and six-pence to a boy who comes every 
morning to read to him till twelve o'clock, 



88 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

and then leads him about in the afternoon to 
alleys and courts, where he goes from house 
to house preaching the gospel of the king- 
dom of God. The last time I saw him, 
which was about ten weeks ago, he was sit- 
ting in his cellar, making his straw articles, 
with his sightless eye-balls fixed with intense 
interest on the boy, who sat opposite to him, 
reading the Report of the Bible Society. He 
had then arrived at the advanced age of 
eighty-four. On my speaking to him, he 
turned his head towards me. I asked him if 
he recognized me ? He said, " I should know 
that voice." I told him my name, and sat 
down by him, and enjoyed some very re- 
freshing conversation. I asked him if Christ 
was as precious to him as ever. He said, 
" No, sir ; he is ten times more so." 

But the blessed effects of this instance of 
God's unspeakable love, do not end here ; for 
in the autumn of (I think it was 1823,) I was 
travelling with a friend in Wales, visiting the 
different places where Bible Societies had 
been formed. We arrived at the foot of a 
very steep hill, and having alighted from our 
carriage in order to walk up it, were over- 
taken by a person on foot, with whom we 
fell into conversation. We discovered that 
he was in the habit of walking fourteen or 
fifteen miles every day, and preaching as 
often, and sometimes seventeen or eighteen 
sermons a week. I introduced the anecdote 
of the sailor, but he interrupted me by throw- 
ing his head on my shoulders, and bursting 



GOD DISPLAYED. 89 

into tears. At first I thought it arose from his 
being affected with it ; but how was I sur- 
prised and delighted to hear him acknow- 
ledge that the sailor had been the means, in 
the hand of God, of bringing him to the 
knowledge of his lost estate by nature, and 
recovery through the death of the only Son 
of God." 

When God begins a work, who can tell 
where he will make an end ? With truth 
may it be said, that < his ways are not as our 
ways, neither his thoughts as our thoughts/ 
This poor sailor, who lived only to blas- 
pheme, and fly, as it were, in the face of 
God, was brought to experience the infinite 
mercy and converting grace of him whom 
he had hitherto so insulted. How ought the 
conduct of the sailor's cousin, to stir up every 
Christian to fresh activity and zeal. Our 
injunction is to "go forth and preach the 
gospel to every creature." What a vast pri- 
vilege do we deprive ourselves of, by settling 
down upon our lees ; and how destitute are 
we of love to the souls of our fellow crea- 
tures to see so many thousands perishing 
around us, without exerting ourselves in 
their behalf. 

How animating is the example of the sailor 
after his conversion ! As soon as he had tasted 
that "the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth 
from all sin ;" he could not forbear declaring 
the glad tidings of salvation to others ; and 
we see part of his labours, through the bles- 
sing of God upon them, in the travelling 



90 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

preacher ; and a further proof of his possess- 
ing that " faith which worketh by love," 
was his devoting an eighth part of all his 
possessions to the service of God. Reader, 
are you mourning over your sins, and feel 
them so great and heavy that you doubt 
whether Christ will ever accept you ? Here 
is encouragement for you. Jesus died for 
sinners, and for them only ; and his invita- 
tion is to "all who are weary and heavy 
laden." " He is able to save to the utter- 
most ;" and since He is infinite, his " utter- 
most " must be so also. Come, and he will 
receive you, although you are the very chief 
of sinners. " Behold, now is the accepted 
time, behold, now is the day of salvation. " 



A FAITHFUL TAHITIAN. 

Among a number of instances which are re- 
corded in the valuable and interesting Jour- 
nal of Messrs. Tyerman and Bennet of provi- 
dential interferences on their behalf, is the 
following. 

On one occasion, when landing at one of 
the Sandwich Islands, the boat was upset in 
endeavouring to pass its dangerous reef. All 
got easily out of their perilous situation ex- 
cept Mr. Bennet, who was under the boat. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 91 

He thus describes his feelings and his de- 
liverance : — 

" I felt perfectly assured that I was about 
to enter into eternity, for the boat was afloat 
in deep water ; and I being completely con- 
cealed beneath it, none of my companions, if 
they had escaped, or were even swimming 
about, could see where I was. I also recol- 
lected that there were numberless sharks 
always on the scout in this bay. I therefore 
committed myself at once, with resignation, 
to that merciful and faithful Creator, at 
whose bidding, I was fully persuaded, I had 
come hither from England ; nor did I feel 
any regret that I tmd come, because I be- 
lieved that I was in the path of duty. 

"During this brief but dreadful interval, 
which seemed an age of suspense, something 
suddenly clasped me round the loins. I re- 
coiled with inexpressible horror, imagining 
at the first touch that my body was within 
the jaws of a shark, whose fangs I expected 
instantly to feel cutting me asunder at a 
crash. But, experiencing a softer pressure 
and a gentle pulling, I carefully put down 
one hand, and found that they were human 
arms, and not a sea monster's jaws, that en- 
folded me ; in fact, they were the arms of 
my faithful, pious, and affectionate Tahitian 
servant, Purahah," 



92 THE PROVIDENCE OF 



A WORD IN SEASON. 



A Christian, near death, greatly complained 
of the Lord's withdrawing from him in the 
season of his greatest need ; and said, he did 
not think that ever the Lord did so with any 
of his children. The minister, to whom he 
made this complaint, answered, " Know you 
not, that thus it was with the Son of God 
himself: when on the cross, a little before 
his death, he cried out, < My God, my God, 
why hast thou forsaken me ?' " This answer 
was so blessed that the storm subsided, tran- 
quillity was restored, and the good man died 
in peace. 

Thus frequently is the Lord pleased very 
graciously to crown the means employed 
with his "reviving grace,' 7 and cause his 
people to sing — 

What though the hosts of death and hell 

All armed against me stand ; 
I shall through grace a conqueror prove, 

And reach the happy land. 



CRUELTY DISARMED BY MEEKNESS. 

A poor but pious woman, who had been 
much persecuted by an ungodly husband for 
her attachment to the Saviour and his gos- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 93 

pel, after hearing the minister, whom she at- 
tended, preach a lecture on that precious 
promise, Deut. xxxiii. 25, " Thy shoes shall 
be iron and brass, and as thy days, so shall 
thy strength be/' returned home to her habi- 
tation with renewed strength imparted. «As 
soon as she entered the house, her husband, 
who had just come from the ale-house, first 
began to abuse her, and then, by a blow on 
her face, struck her to the ground. The 
good woman, who had learned of her blessed 
Lord, not to render evil for evil, rose, and 
said to her husband, " You have struck me 
on the one cheek, and, as Christ hath com- 
manded me, I turn the other to you. If you 
have the heart to do it, smite that also, and I 
will cheerfully bear it for His sake, who has 
this night promised to give me strength for 
my day of trial." Instead of repeating the 
blow, the man's heart was struck with a con- 
viction that there must be something far 
above what nature could teach in that religion 
which enabled his wife to bear such usage 
with such a spirit, That determined him to 
go with her to hear her minister. The Lord 
met with him, and the minister by whom 
this is related, added, that at that time he 
was one of the most lively and devoted men 
in his congregation. Here the declaration 
was proved, that " the wrath of man shall 
praise the Lord, and the remainder of it he 
will restrain." 



94 THE PROVIDENCE OF 



A ROYAL PROMISE. 



Frederick the Great one day rang his 
bell several times, and no one came. He 
opened the door, and found his page asleep 
in an arm-chair. Advancing to awake him, he 
perceived the corner of a note hanging out 
of his pocket. Curious to know what it was, 
he took and read it. It was a letter from the 
mother of the youth, who was poor and 
destitute, thanking him for sending her part 
of his wages to relieve her poverty. She 
concluded by telling him God would bless 
him for his good conduct. The king, after 
reading it, went softly into his room, took a 
purse of ducats, and slipped it, with the let- 
ter, into the pocket of the page. He returned, 
and rung his bell so loud that the page 
awoke and went in. " Thou hast slept well/' 
said the king; the page wished to excuse 
himself, and in his confusion, put his hand 
into his pocket, and felt the purse with as- 
tonishment. He drew it out, turned pale, 
and, looking at the king, burst into tears, 
without being able to utter a word. " What 
is the matter?" said the king. "What hast 
thou ?" " Oh, Sire," replied the youth, fall- 
ing upon his knees, " they wish to ruin me : 
I do not know how this money came into 
my pocket." "Why, friend," said Frede- 
rick, " God often sends us blessings while we 
are asleep. Send that to thy mother ; salute 
her from me, and say, that I will take care 
of thee!" 



GOD DISPLAYED. 95 



THE WOUNDED CADET. 

Colonel Gardiner served first as a cadet 
very early, and then, at fourteen years old, 
bore an ensign's commission in a Scots regi- 
ment in the Dutch service, which he bore in 
the battle of Ramilies, being then in the nine- 
teenth year of his age. In this ever memo- 
rable action, he received a wound in the 
mouth by a musket-ball. He was of a party 
in the forlorn hope, and was commanded on 
what seemed almost a desperate service — to 
dispossess the French of the church-yard at 
Ramilies, where a considerable number of 
them were posted to remarkable advantage. 
They succeeded much better than was ex- 
pected ; and it may well be supposed that 
Mr. Gardiner, who had before been in several 
encounters, and had the view of making his 
fortune to animate the natural intrepidity of 
his spirit, was glad of such an opportunity 
of signalizing himself. Accordingly, he had 
planted his colours on an advanced ground, 
and, while he was calling to his men, he re- 
ceived a shot into his mouth, which, without 
beating out any of his teeth, or touching the 
forepart of his tongue, went through his 
neck, and came out about an inch and a half 
from the left side of the vertebras. Not feel- 
ing, at first, the pain of the stroke, he 
wondered what had become of the ball, and, 
in the wildness of his surprise, began to sus- 
pect he had swallowed it;, but, dropping 



96 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

soon after, he traced the passage of it by his 
finger, when he could discover it in no other 
way. 

This accident happened about five or six 
in the evening, on the 23d May, 1706: and 
the army, pursuing its advantages against 
the French, without ever regarding the 
wounded (which was, it seems, the Duke of 
Marlborough's constant method), our young 
officer lay all night on the field, agitated, 
as may well be supposed, with a great va- 
riety of thoughts. He assured me, that when 
he reflected upon the circumstances of his 
wound, that a bail should, as he conceived 
it, go through his head, without killing him, 
he thought God had preserved him by mira- 
cle ; and, therefore, assuredly concluded that 
he should live, abandoned and desperate as 
his state then seemed to be. Yet (which ap- 
peared to me very astonishing) he had very 
little thoughts of humbling himself before 
God, and returning to him, after the wander- 
ings of a life so licentiously begun. But, ex- 
pecting to recover, his mind was taken up 
with contrivances to secure his gold, of which 
he had a pretty deal about him, and he had 
recourse to a very odd expedient, which 
proved successful. Expecting to be stripped, 
he first took out a handful of that clotted 
gore of which he was frequently obliged to 
clear his mouth, or he would have been 
choked, and putting it into his left hand he 
took out his money, which, I think, was 
about nineteen pistoles, and shutting his hand 



GOD DISPLAYED. 97 

and besmearing the back part of it with 
blood, he kept it in this position till the 
blood dried in such a manner that his hand 
could not easily fall open, though any sudden 
surprise should happen, in which he might 
lose the presence of mind which that conceal- 
ment otherwise would have required. 

In the morning, the French, who were 
masters of that spot, though their forces 
were defeated in some distance, came to 
plunder the slain, and seeing him to appear- 
ance almost expiring, one of them was just 
applying a sword to his breast, to destroy 
the little remainder of life, when, in the criti- 
cal moment upon which all the extraordi- 
nary events of such a life as it afterwards 
proved, were suspended, a cordelier, who 
attended the plunderers, interposed, taking 
him by his dress for a Frenchman, and said, 
" Do not kill that poor child." Our young 
soldier heard all that passed, though he was 
not able to speak one word; and opening his 
eyes, made a sign for something to drink. 
They gave him a sup of some spirituous 
liquor, which happened to be at hand, by 
which, he said, he found a more sensible 
refreshment than he could remember from 
anything he had tasted either before or since. 
Then, signifying to the friar to lean down 
his ear to his mouth, he employed the first 
efforts of his feeble breath in telling him 
(what, alas ! was a contrived falsehood,) that 
he was nephew to the governor of Huy, a 
neutral town in the neighbourhood, and that 



98 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

if he could take any method of conveying 
him thither, he had no doubt but his uncle 
would liberally reward him. He had, in- 
deed, a friend at Huy, who, I think, was 
governor, and, if I mistake not, had been 
acquainted with the captain, his father, from 
whom he expected a kind reception ; but the 
relationship was only pretended. On hear- 
ing this, they laid him on a sort of hand- 
barrow, and sent him by a file of musketeers 
towards the place ; but the men lost their 
way, and got into a wood, towards the eve- 
ning, in which they were obliged to continue 
all night. The poor patient's wound being 
still undressed, it is not to be wondered at 
that by this time it raged violently. The 
anguish of it engaged him earnestly to beg 
that they would kill him outright, or leave 
him there to die, without the torture of any 
further motion ; and, indeed, they were 
obliged for a considerable time to rest on 
account of their own weariness. Thus he 
spent the second night in the open air, with- 
out anything more than a common bandage 
to staunch the blood. He has often men- 
tioned it as a most astonishing providence, 
that he did not bleed to death, which, under 
God, he ascribed to the remarkable coldness 
of these two nights. 

Judging it quite unsafe to attempt carry 
ing him to Huy, from whence they were 
now several miles distant, his convoy took 
him early in the morning to a convent in the 
neighbourhood, where he was hospitably 



GOD DISPLAYED. 99 

received, and treated with great kindness 
and tenderness. But the cure of his wound 
was committed to an ignorant barber sur- 
geon, who lived near the house, the best 
shift that could then be made, at a time 
when we may easily suppose persons of 
ability in their profession had their hands 
full of employment. The lint which this art- 
ist applied, was almost like a peg driven into 
the wound ; and gentlemen of skill and expe- 
rience, when they came to hear of the man- 
ner in which he was treated, wondered how 
he could possibly survive such management. 
But, by the blessing of God on these applica- 
tions, rough as they were, he recovered in a 
few months. 



SUICIDE PREVENTED. 

I was weary of life, (says the narrator, an 
Italian nobleman,) and, after a day such as 
few know, or have known, and none would 
wish to remember, was hurrying along the 
street to the river, when I felt a sudden check. 
I turned and beheld a little boy, who had 
caught the skirt of my cloak in his anxiety 
to solicit my notice. His look and manners 
were irresistible ; nor less so was the lesson 
he had learnt. "There are six of us, and 
we are dying for want of food." " Why 



100 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

should I not/' said I to myself, "relieve this 
wretched family •? I have the means, and it 
will not delay me many minutes. But what 
if it does ?" The scene of misery he con- 
ducted me to cannot be described. I threw 
them my purse, and their burst of gratitude 
overcame me. It filled my eyes — it went as 
a cordial to my heart. " I will call again to- 
morrow," I cried. Fool that I was, to think 
of leaving a world where such pleasure was 
to be had, and so cheap. — Rogers's Italy. 



A SAILOR PRESERVED. 

The Honourable Captain Noel, of the royal 
navy, related the following interesting anec- 
dote at a public meeting in 1S26. It was 
supposed by many to describe his own reli- 
gious experience : — 

A young officer, whose Bible had long 
been to him a sealed book and a dead letter, 
having no love or fear of God, was appointed 
to a ship on a distant station. He was per- 
mitted, from ill health, to remain on shore at 
Sicily, studying the dangerous works of Vol- 
taire, and others of the same tendency, till 
his mind was led into the abyss of infidelity, 
when he embarked on board a ship with a 
friend bound to the same station. They fre- 
quently stopped to visit the towns on the 



GOD DISPLAYED. 101 

coast which they passed, and on those occa- 
sions the captain never once left her without 
his friend accompanying him : but one even- 
ing the captain received a communication 
from the governor of one of these towns, re- 
questing his advice in a case of some import- 
ance. The weather being moderate, he low- 
ered his boat, and called for this young officer 
to accompany him. He prepared to do so ; but 
when he reached the ship's side, he declined 
going, and from that time he saw his friend 
no more ! for within two hours the wind 
arose, the boat was dashed to pieces on some 
rocks, and nine souls were in a moment be- 
fore their God ! Awful was the warning to 
the officer left behind ; the pages of Voltaire 
were now laid aside ; his Bible was read — 
his heart was affected. In a short time after- 
wards he heard that the ship was on fire in 
the sail-room. The flames spread, and for 
some time the safety of the ship was doubt- 
ful. No language can describe the anguish 
of his soul. In dark dismay he contemplated 
his danger, and anticipated an awful death, 
immediate judgment, and eternal misery. 
But the fire was subdued, the ship was pre- 
served, and he was safe. On his bended 
knees he poured out his soul in prayer and 
thanksgiving for his deliverance, and prayed 
that his sins might be blotted out, and that 
he might be kept from falling. His prayer 
was heard, and his petition was granted. 
From that time his Bible has become his 
9* 



102 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

compass and his chart; from its precious 
promises he has drawn his solace in afflic- 
tion — his comfort in life. 



THE INFLUENCE OF TRUTH. 

The following singular account of Persian 
integrity, is given in "Malcolm's Persia:" — 
" Shaikh Mohydeen Abdool Kauder being 
induced to undertake a religious life, after the 
fashion of his country, his mother, taking out 
eighty deenars, gave him half, as all his in- 
heritance, the other half being reserved for 
his brother. ( She made me swear,' says 
Mohydeen, < when she gave it to me, never 
to tell a lie ; and afterwards, bidding me fare- 
well, exclaimed, < Go, my son, I give thee to 
God. We shall not meet again till the day 
of judgment !' I went on, until I came near 
Hamadan, when our kiffilah was plundered 
by sixty horsemen. One fellow asked me 
what I had got? < Forty deenars,' I said, 
< are sewed under my garment.' The fellow 
laughed, thinking, no doubt, I was joking 
him. ' What have you got ?' said another. 
I gave him the same answer. When they 
were dividing the spoil, I was called to an 
eminence, where the chief stood. * What 
property have you, my little fellow?' said 
he. < I have told your people already,' I re- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 103 

plied ; c I have forty deenars sewed up care- 
fully in my clothes.' He desired them to be 
ripped open, and found my money. < And 
how came you,' said he, with surprise, ( to 
declare so openly what had been so carefully 
hidden V i Because,' I replied, < I will not 
be false to my mother, to whom I have pro- 
mised never to conceal the truth.' * Child,' 
said the robber, i hast thou such a sense of 
duty to thy mother, at thy years; and am I 
insensible, at my age, of the duty I owe to 
my God? Give me thy hand, innocent boy/ 
he continued, ' that I may swear repentance 
upon it.' He did so. His followers were 
all alike struck with the scene. < You have 
been our leader in guilt,' said they to their 
chief, < be the same in the path of virtue ;' 
and instantly, at his order, they made restitu- 
tion of their spoil, and vowed repentance on 
my hand.' " 

Youthful reader ! remember the import- 
ance of always speaking the truth. 



NEVER DESPAIR. 

On the carriage of Mr. Jonas Han way was 
the following device, which we mention for 
the sake of an interesting anecdote. 

The device was a man dressed in a Per- 
sian habit, just landed in a storm on a rude 



104 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

coast, and leaning on a sword; his coun- 
tenance calm and resigned. In the back 
ground was depicted a boat beaten about by 
the billows ; in front, a shield, charged with 
his arms, leaning against a tree, and under- 
neath this motto : — " Never despair." < — A 
young merchant having sustained some heavy 
losses, and not knowing how to extricate 
himself, was returning from the Exchange 
with the awful determination of putting an 
end to his existence ; but as he was going on 
with the black design in his thoughts, his eye 
was caught by Mr. Hanway's device ; and 
the motto — "Never despair" — rushed into 
his mind : — the horrid resolution was stag- 
gered. He went home — the motto continued 
uppermost, and he was preserved. A few 
days afterwards a relation died, and left him 
an ample fortune, and he lived many years 
the friend of Mr. Hanway and of mankind. 



AN EXCHANGE PREVENTED, 

" Being detained," observes General Burns, 
"on board the Cormorant, at Covves, in the 
Isle of Wight, for nearly a month, by strong 
westerly winds, I grew weary ; and, being 
anxious to know something about the Royal 
George, I set off early one fine morning in 
the passage boat for Portsmouth, purposely 



GOD DISPLAYED. 105 

to inquire, at the Admiral's office, if she was 
soon expected in port. I fully intended to 
return to Cowes by the first boat, as I had 
just money enough left for that purpose ; but, 
to my great sorrow, about noon, it began to 
blow a most violent gale, so that none of the 
boats could venture out for several days. 
Never was I placed in a more distressing 
situation. A perfect stranger in Portsmouth, 
with only a few pence in my pocket, I con- 
tinued walking round and round the ram- 
parts nearly the whole of the day, till I was 
so completely worn out with fatigue and 
hunger, that the violence of the wind almost 
drove me off my legs. Night was approach- 
ing. Finding it was impossible to continue 
in this state much longer, and being well nigh 
distracted, I began to devise schemes where 
I should rest, and how I should satisfy the 
cravings of appetite. At last I fixed on the 
following expedient : Having a pair of silver 
buckles in my shoes, the gift of an affec- 
tionate sister, I determined, though grieved 
at the deed, to take them to a Jew in the 
town, and exchange them for metal ones ; in 
hopes that the overplus would procure me 
a lodging, and purchase some food. Just as 
I was stepping off the rampart to put my 
plan into execution, I was accosted in a very 
friendly manner by an old acquaintance, who 
shook me by the hand and inquired if I had 
dined ? When answered in the negative, he 
replied, < Then come along with me : we are 
just in time.' By this friend I was plenti- 



106 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

fully supplied for a few days, till the weather 
permitted me to return to my ship at Cowes. 
Thus the same compassionate God who feeds 
the young ravens when they cry (Ps. cxlvii. 
9,) was at no loss to find means to supply 
the wants of an ungrateful mortal, who did 
not then seek him by prayer, nor acknow- 
ledge the benefits so seasonably bestowed. 
But having been several times since at Ports- 
mouth, I have walked round the ramparts 
with a glad heart, in the recollection of this 
mercy, praising the Lord under a feeling 
sense of his goodness." 



AN UNEXPECTED GUIDE. 

During one of the early rebellions with 
which the beautiful country of Ireland has 
been distracted, an English lady of family, 
and distinguished especially for her eminent 
piety, was compelled, with her three chil- 
dren, one of whom was an infant at her 
breast, and some other persons, to flee from 
her home. They had not proceeded far in 
their flight before they were overtaken by a 
party of infuriated Irish, and stripped naked; 
but, by the providence of God, they were 
induced to spare their lives; probably imagin- 
ing that their hunger would soon put an end 
to their existence. They proceeded onwards 
until they had reached the margin of a river 



GOD DISPLAYED. 107 

which runs to Locheach, where they were 
met by another party of Irish, who, less mer- 
ciful than their fellows, determined to cast 
the whole of them into the river. The lady 
besought them to allow her a few moments 
for prayer. Casting herself naked upon the 
frozen ground, she implored the help of God ; 
when the barbarians, seizing her by the feet, 
dragged her along the rugged ground, to cast 
her into the river. Rising upon her knee, 
she addressed them by saying, " You should 
I am sure be Christians : men I see you are. 
In taking our miserable lives you will do us a 
favour ; but know that, as we never wronged 
you nor yours, and you yourselves must one 
day die, you must give an account of your 
cruelty to the Judge of heaven and earth." 

This spirited appeal seemed to affect them. 
One of the party, an Irish priest, proposed 
that their lives should be spared, but that they 
should put them on the opposite island, and 
there leave them to perish. His advice was 
received with approbation ; and a boat being 
at that time by the side of the river, they 
were forced into it and conveyed over. After 
remaining four days, some of the sufferers 
died of cold and hunger. The lady, how- 
ever, and her children were spared. Next 
day two of the children crept a little way 
from the rest, and found the hide of a beast 
which had been killed. This they conveyed 
to their mother, who contrived to enfold three 
in it, as they were lying on the cold snow. 
Another dismal night followed, when, on the 



10S THE PROVIDENCE OF 

following day, a boat passed down the river, 
The lady called to those on board, entreating 
that, for God's sake, they would come and 
take her from her painful situation ! This 
they refused. She then craved a little bread, 
but they replied they had none. Perceiving 
some smoke arising from the boat, she im- 
plored a lighted coal might be given her. 
This they granted ; and with a few pieces of 
wood she contrived to kindle a fire. The 
boys then took a portion of the hide they had 
found, and laid it on the flame, and after- 
wards began to devour it. Thus they lived 
for ten days ; lying on the snow, and perish- 
ing almost through the intensity of the cold 
and their pressing hunger. The next day 
they were removed from this island to an- 
other place, and there left without any more 
prospect of deliverance than before. 

Like another Hagar, she could not endure 
to witness the death of her children ; and, 
therefore, although the two boys were young 
and so starved as to be scarcely able to move, 
she pressed them to go out of her sight un- 
der pretence of seeking some fire- wood. Here 
God put forth his hand, and sent help to 
them. The poor children had not, by reason 
of their weakness, proceeded far, when they 
saw two or three large dogs devouring a 
man who had been killed. They trembled 
with fear : one of the dogs turned from his 
prey, and came running and leaping up to 
the children without offering to injure them. 
At first it gently fawned upon them ; and 



GOD DISPLAYED. 109 

then, running a little back, seemed to invite 
them to follow. In this way it led the chil- 
dren to a house which was protected by the 
English, in Antrim; by which means the 
whole family were miraculously preserved. 



PERSEVERING PIETY REWARDED. 

Mr. Studly was a lawyer in Kent, of about 
400/. a-year. He was a great enemy to the 
power of religion, and a hater of those called 
Puritans. His son, in his youth, appeared 
to follow in the same steps, until a singular 
Providence produced a change in him. 

The young man was in London ; and, 
having mixed in company, left them one 
night in a state of intoxication. As he pro- 
ceeded towards his lodgings, the darkness of 
the night, together with his intoxication, pre- 
vented his seeing an open cellar before him, 
into which he unexpectedly fell. He was 
instantly seized with horror ; imagining, 
from the effects of the liquor which he had 
taken, that he had fallen into perdition. After 
lying there some hours, scarcely half sensi- 
ble, he was found, and taken out, without 
having received any material injury. The 
effects, however, which the powerful convic- 
tions he had experienced in his fall had pro- 
duced, did not subside. He returned home 
10 - 



110 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

to his father's, and became for a while 
wretched in the extreme. He now turned 
his whole attention to the perusal of the 
Holy Scriptures and prayer ; which being 
discovered by his father, he feared above all 
things his son would turn Puritan, and so 
dishonour him. In order to prevent so terri- 
ble an event, he treated him with the greatest 
harshness; compelling him to attend and 
clean his horses. To this, however, he sub- 
mitted without a murmur ; and, while in 
that humble service, as he afterwards stated 
to a minister, experienced such enjoyments 
and comfort as he never afterwards knew. 
After he had performed his duty at the 
stables, he employed his time, late at night, 
in reading his Bible. This was discovered 
by his unfeeling parent ; and henceforth 
candle was denied him. Still he did not 
murmur, but contrived by the light of the 
fire to pursue his delightful study. 

After these means had been proved to be 
ineffectual, to cure him of his supposed 
malady, his father determined to send him 
to France ; conceiving that the climate and 
company of that country might remove it. 
Thither he went ; and now, being at his own 
disposal, he was guided by Providence to 
the house of a pious Protestant minister, 
with whom he took up his lodgings. His 
progress in the language was rapid, and his 
growth in grace not less. An account of his 
proficiency in the language was transmitted 
to his father, by the minister, in consequence 



GOD DISPLAYED. Ill 

of his desiring it. Pleased with such an ac- 
count, he ordered his return ; and requested 
that the gentleman with whom he had been 
living might accompany him. On their arri- 
val they were received with every expression 
of pleasure by Mr. Studly ; who was then 
ignorant that his son's tutor was a minister. 
They had not been long in his house, before his 
son and the French gentleman were discover- 
ed by him engaged in prayer. All the wrath of 
the persecutor rose within him ; his anger 
appeared to know no bounds. He instantly 
paid what was due to the tutor, and forbade 
him again to enter his house. 

It was now necessary that some other 
means should be employed to save his son. He 
therefore, used the interest he possessed with 
a lady of distinction, at Whitehall, to receive 
his son as her gentleman, — to wait upon her 
as occasion might require. He hoped that 
a court life might effect what nothing else 
had been able to accomplish. Among the 
numerous servants of this personage, crime 
of almost every kind was committed. Young 
Studly felt grieved at the impious oaths 
which he frequently heard ; and, with pru- 
dence, gravely proceeded to reprove them. 
The effect was, that the stout-hearted trem- 
bled before him, and a most pleasing trans- 
formation took place. A year had passed 
away, and Mr. Studly made his first visit, to 
inquire concerning his son ; when he was in- 
formed by the lady that her obligation to him 
was exceedingly great ; for since his son had 



112 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

been with her, an entire reformation had 
taken place in her establishment. Struck 
with amazement at what he heard, neither 
good sense nor good manners guided him: 
he instantly inquired with rage, if he would 
make Puritans at Whitehall ; and then, turn- 
ing to the lady, observed, that her house was 
no place for his son, and immediately left, 
taking the youth with him. 

Having returned to Kent, he resolved, as 
a last attempt, to unite him in marriage, if 
possible, with one who might stifle religion 
within him ; and, according to his own view, 
succeeded in making arrangements. Having 
given orders to a servant to prepare their 
horses in the morning, he directed his son to 
be ready to accompany him. His orders 
were attended to, and they commenced their 
journey. As they rode forward, Mr. Studly 
briefly stated to his son the grief he had 
caused him by his conduct, and that, as 
every other way appeared vain to effect his 
reformation, he was now about to make his 
last effort; as he intended he should be 
united to the daughter of a gentleman to 
whose house they were then travelling. If 
he submitted to his wish, he would settle his 
whole estate upon him ; but, if he refused, he 
should renounce him for ever. The youth 
scarcely replied ; he knew his father's tem- 
per, and he also knew that the family he 
had mentioned was proverbially profane. 

Having reached the house, they were 
courteously received and handsomely enter- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 113 

tained. The lady was seen. Her manners 
and beauty were most fascinating. His 
youthful heart was ensnared; and, as they 
returned home, in reply to a question ] ro- 
posed by his father, how he liked her, he 
replied, " if she did not reject him he should 
be happy to marry her." The intimacy of 
the father with the family, and the desire 
they felt for uniting with Mr. Studly, ren- 
dered all fears on this head unnecessary. 
Young Studly soon returned to the house ; 
and, as his father had desired that neither 
swearing nor other public vice should be 
attended to during his son's visit, lest he 
should retire disgusted, nothing of the kind 
took place- The period of courtship was 
made as brief as possible. They were mar- 
ried ! — At the wedding dinner the mask was 
thrown off; healths were drunk, and swear- 
ing was mixed with their drinking; and, 
among others, the bride herself swore. 
Amazed and grieved, young Studly rose 
suddenly from the table, hurried to the 
stable, took horse and rode away without 
knowing whither. He saw and bewailed 
his unhappy situation, and condemned him- 
self for having restrained prayer before God. 
Having entered a wood, he led his horse to 
a retired spot, and after fastening him to a 
tree, spent the afternoon in prayers and. 
tears. He wrestled with God for the con- 
version of his wife ; and, before he arose, 
felt a secret hope that his request would be 
granted. The bridegroom was soon missed 



114 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

from the bridal feast, and all was instant 
hurry and confusion ; messengers were de- 
spatched upon horses in every direction, in 
search of him. In the evening he returned, 
and upon inquiring for his bride, was in- 
formed she had retired to her chamber. He 
instantly followed, and found her over- 
whelmed with grief. "Have you," she 
asked, "done well to expose me to scorn 
and derision all the day ?" He requested 
she would patiently seat herself by him, and 
he would inform her what he had done, why 
he had so acted, and what the Lord had, 
through grace, done for him. With a touch- 
ing pathos he recounted the history of his 
life ; his feelings were frequently overpower- 
ed, and he wept : while at several points in 
his history, he exclaimed — " Through grace, 
God did thus and thus for me." 

Having finished, she asked him what he 
meant by the words he had so often used — 
"through grace." He explained to her ; and 
she inquired if he thought there was grace 
in God for her. He assured her there was : 
" I have been praying for thee in the wood, 
and God has heard my prayers and seen my 
tears; let us now," he continued, "go to him 
together." They kneeled down, and, by 
prayer and supplication, mingled with weep- 
ing, sought mercy. When supper was an- 
nounced they attended the invitation. The 
bride's father, as usual, swore, and the daugh- 
ter immediately besought him not to swear. 
Mr. Studly rose instantly from the table, 



GOD DISPLAYED. 115 

swore fiercely, and insisted that his son had 
made a Puritan of her already. He shortly 
afterwards made his will, and disposed of his 
estate to strangers, leaving his son only ten 
pounds. Soon afterwards he died, and the 
young man meekly received what his father 
had left him, and departed. 

In consequence of the haste in which his 
marriage had been effected, his wife had no 
portion promised her. All she now possessed 
was two hundred pounds, which she had in 
her own hands, having received it as a pre- 
sent from her grandmother. They were now 
abandoned by all their friends, but not by 
God. Directed by his providence they took 
a farm in Sussex, and stocked it. Mrs. 
Studly attended to the dairy, and became an 
invaluable helpmate to her husband. Years 
passed away, and they were blessed with 
several children ; when, while journeying in 
a part of Kent, he was met by one of the 
tenants of his late father's estate, who saluted 
him by the title of landlord. "I am not 
your landlord," replied Mr. Studly. "Yes, 
sir, you are," answered the man ; "I know 
more than you do of the settlement; your 
father was a cunning lawyer, but, with all 
his wit, he could not take the estate from 
you, whom he had made joint purchaser. 
This is known to other tenants as well as 
myself, and we have, therefore, refused to 
pay any money to Dr. Reeves, to whom part 
of it was willed. I have sixteen pounds 
ready for you, which I will pay to your 



116 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

acquittance, and that will enable you to con- 
test the point at law with them." Mr. Studly 
stood astounded at this help, evidently sent by 
God's providence. He received the money, 
sued for the estate, and, in a term or two, re- 
ceived it. 



FAITH HONOURED. 

The celebrated Professor Franke, of Ger- 
many, perhaps displayed the power of faith, 
and realized the benefits connected with it, 
in an equal, if not superior degree, to any 
individual since the days of the apostles. 
Upon his settlement at Glaucha, as minister 
of that place, he adopted a plan, which had 
before been adopted in Germany, to appoint 
a certain day on which charitable distribu- 
tions should be made to the poor. He was 
not, however, content with simply meeting 
their present pressing needs, but devised a 
means by which more substantial benefits 
might be derived by them. Led on by the 
providence of God, he commenced the erec- 
tion of the orphan house, in the history of 
which such a glorious train of surprising 
providences appeared, as is sufficient to 
strengthen the weakest faith, and to enliven 
the heart almost dead in despondency. 
After the house had been almost by mira- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 117 

cle erected, and was filled with inhabitants, 
the trial of 4 faith, as recorded in the Pietas 
Hallensis, was continually experienced. The 
Professor observes : — 

"Before Easter, 1696, 1 found the provi- 
sions for the poor so far exhausted, that I did 
not know where to get any thing towards de- 
fraying the expenses of the ensuing week ; 
but God was pleased to relieve us by an un- 
expected help. He inclined the heart of a 
person, (who it was, where residing, or of 
which sex, the Lord knoweth,) to pay down 
one thousand crowns for the relief of the 
poor, and this sum was delivered to me at a 
time, when our provisions were brought to 
the very last crumb. 

"In the year 1699, about February/' he 
continues, "I found myself under great straits, 
and indeed it was an hour of probation. All 
our flour being spent, and the daily necessi- 
ties of the poor calling for large supplies, that 
divine saying made a deep impression upon 
me, i Seek first the kingdom of God,' &c, 
directing the whole bent of my soul to a close 
union with God. When I was now laying 
out the last money, I said, in my thoughts, 
6 Lord, look upon my necessity." Then go- 
ing out of my chamber to repair to college, 
where I was to attend my public lecture, I 
unexpectedly found a student in my house, 
who waited for my coming out, and pre- 
sented me with the sum of seventy crowns, 
sent by some friends to support the hos- 



IIS THE PROVIDENCE OF 

pital, from a place above two hundred miles 
distant. 

" Soon after this, there was want in every 
corner. The steward brought in his book, 
and desired me to defray the weekly charges. 
My recourse was to God, through faith. The 
expenses were necessary, and I saw not the 
least provision, nor any way to procure it. 
This made me resolve to retire into my study, 
and to beg the Lord's assistance in so press- 
ing a necessity ; but I designed first to finish 
the task I was about, being employed in dic- 
tating something to my students. Having 
done with this, and preparing now for prayer, 
I received a letter from a merchant, intimating 
that he was ordered to pay one thousand 
crowns to me for the relief of the house. 
This put me in mind of that saying, Isaiah 
lxv. 24, ' And it shall come to pass that be- 
fore they call I will answer.' Nevertheless, 
I entered my closet, and instead of begging 
and praying, as I had designed, I praised and 
extolled the name of the Lord. 

" About Michaelmas I was in want again, 
yet I found myself not cast down. Just as I 
came home, the steward, addressing himself 
to me, said, 'Is there any money brought in V 
for, it being Saturday, he was to pay the 
workmen employed about the hospital. To 
this I answered, 'No ; but I believe in God.' 
Scarce was the word out of my mouth, when 
I was told a student desired to speak with 
me, who then brought thirty crowns from a 
person whose name he would not disclose. I 



GOD DISPLAYED. 119 

then asked the steward how much he wanted 
at present ; he said, < Thirty crowns ;' I re- 
plied, i Here they are \ but do you want any 
more ?' < No/ he answered. Thus we were 
supplied in the very moment we wanted 
relief, and with the very sum that was re- 
quired. 

" Another time, I fell into deep poverty, 
and (what was more,) I was urged by the 
importunity of most who were about me, 
calling for a supply for their pressing neces- 
sities. But having cast my eye up to the 
Lord, I answered them plainly thus : " Ye 
come all to seek money of me, but I know of 
another benefactor to go to,' meaning the 
Lord. The word was scarcely out of my 
mouth, when a friend, who was then just 
come off a journey, cast, privately, fourteen 
ducats into my hand ; which proved a fresh 
instance of the endearing providence of God. 
Once I stood in need of a great sum of 
money, insomuch that one hundred crowns 
would not have served the turn, and yet I 
saw not the least appearance how I might 
be supplied with one hundred groats. The 
steward set forth the want we were in ; I 
bade him come to me again after dinner, and I 
determined to put up my prayers to the Lord 
for his asssitance. When he came after din- 
ner I was still in the same want, and so I ap- 
plied to him to come in the evening. In the 
meantime, a friend of mine came to see me, 
and with him I joined in prayer, and found 
myself much moved to praise and magnify 



120 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

the Lord for all his admirable dealings to- 
wards mankind, even from the beginning of 
the world ; and the most remarkable instan- 
ces came readily to my remembrance while 
I was praying. I was so elevated in prais- 
ing and magnifying God, that I insisted only 
on that exercise of my present devotion, and 
found no difficulty to put up many anxious 
petitions to be delivered from the present 
necessity. At length, my friend taking his 
leave, I accompanied him to the door, where 
I found the steward waiting on one side for 
the money he wanted, and on the other, a 
person who brought one hundred and fifty 
crowns for the hospital. 

" About harvest, we met with a wonderful 
train of trials and deliverances ; for though a 
certain minister had sent in twelve crowns, 
and some other small sums fell in, yet all 
this seemed too little to carry us through the 
present want. But, soon afterwards, a 
student brought forty crowns in silver, and 
five ducats in gold, from a person whose 
name was not to be told, desiring only a re- 
ceipt; while I was writing which, a godly 
minister came to see me, who praised the 
Lord when he heard after what manner our 
want was just then supplied ; offering me, at 
the same time, a parcel of silver lace, which 
a gentlewoman, now grown sensible of her 
vanities, had given him for our help. But 
all this was soon spent in that extremity to 
which we were reduced. When the steward 
came for money I had but a crown to give 



GOD DISPLAYED. 121 

him; and soon after, when he importuned 
me again, I told him 4 he had received the 
last crown yesterday ; and I had not a farth- 
ing left.' He asked me what he should do 
with the men that used to cleave the wood, 
and the women who cleaned the children, 
for, being poor people, they would sadly 
want their money ; adding, ( if there was but 
one crown to be had, he would make a shift.' 
I replied < there was not so much now in 
store ; but the Lord knew it was an hospital 
for the poor, and that he had nothing for its 
maintenance.' <'Tis true,' he rejoined, and 
left the room. Coming within sight of the 
hospital, he saw a waggon before it laden 
with corn, which one of our benefactors had 
caused to be conveyed thither (knowing 
nothing of the want we then were reduced 
to); at which sight the steward was surprised 
with joy, exceedingly admiring the wonder- 
ful providence of God. Soon after, he got 
together a little money, sufficient for the 
cleavers of wood, and the women who at- 
tended to the children, and so was happily 
carried through his difficulties." 



AN AWFUL END. 

In the middle of July, after a most sultry 
day, when unable to sleep, I had taken a 
11 



122 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

turn backwards and forwards in the veran- 
dah of my dwelling, at Gusserah ; and was 
about to retire once more to seek repose, 
when my attention was engaged, by an un- 
usual noise at the ghaut before me ; and pre- 
sently I heard a gruff voice calling out, 
" House, a-hoy ! house, a-hoy !" Looking 
out, I inquired what was wanted ; when two 
sailors approached and said, " Your honour, 
are you the minister that preaches in the 
place below ?" I said, " Yes, my good friend ; 
what is your pleasure with me ?" " Why, 
if your honour will just come and say a bit 
of prayer to our chief mate, it will be a cha- 
rity, for he is sadly taken aback, and we don't 
think he'll ever get out of his berth again." 
" Did he request you to come to me ?" " No, 
your honour. He does nothing but groan 
and rave about hell, and such things ; but the 
second mate thinks a bit of prayer or so would 
do him good." "Will not the morning be 
the better time to visit him, think ye ?" 
" Why it may be he '11 not see the morning, 
we are thinking, your honour." " Well, 
then," said I, "it shall be as you wish — I '11 
go with you." In a few minutes I was 
seated in the stern of the captain's cutter, and 
six sturdy hands soon brought me alongside 
a large vessel, in the middle of the stream. 
There was something peculiarly solemn and 
impressive in the scene ; the time was mid- 
night ; all around was still and calm, save the 
rippling of the water, and the noise occasioned 
by the slow pacing of the watch on deck, and 



GOD DISPLAYED. 123 

the heart-rending groans which were uttered 
by the sick man; these, at intervals, had 
reached my ear during our way to the ship, 
and when I mounted the gangway, were very 
loud indeed. The second mate met me on 
the quarter-deck, and stated, that the chief 
mate was pronounced by the doctors to be in 
a dying condition, and that as his mind seemed 
to be in a most distressing state of alarm, he 
had sent for me at this unseasonable hour, to 
see if any consolation could be administered 
to him. I told him that no time was unsea- 
sonable to me, and begged he would imme- 
diately conduct me to the dying man. For 
the sake of air his cot was slung in the cuddy, 
and several persons surrounded it, apparently 
endeavouring to soothe his mind ; but, alas ! 
in vain. When informed who I was, he 
eagerly stretched forth his hand, and grasping 
mine with great strength, said, "Dear sir, 
pray for me ! pray for me P I begged him 
to be calm, and said, " I will pray for you ; 
but let me beseech you not to waste your 
breath in vain exclamations and lamenta- 
tions : pray for yourself — I will offer prayer 
— you must join with me." " Oh, no, sir, I 
cannot pray — My God ! I never have prayed 
— no, sir, I never shall pray. I feel I cannot 
— I cannot — I am lost! I am lost! Oh! 
that I had never been born !" 1 entreated 
him not to indulge in such a strain. I pointed 
out the value of the atoning blood of Christ; 
told him of the willingness of Christ to save 
the vilest of the vile • told him of the dying 



124 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

thief; in short, all that I could possibly say 
to encourage a hope of salvation, I did say ; 
but he would still cry oat, " Sir, this is not 
for me — I am lost ! My father is in heaven 
— my mother will be there. I broke my fa- 
ther's heart, — I despised their prayers, their 
counsel, and their entreaties — and now I can- 
not pray — I cannot hope." I began to read 
the Scriptures; he stopped me, saying, "Pray 
for me directly." I prayed ; but, alas ! every 
petition for mercy seemed only to aggravate 
his misery, and I could not proceed for his 
groans and sighs. In this awful state he 
continued till about three o'clock in the 
morning, when he appeared to be more calm 
for about five minutes, during which time he 
seemed to listen very attentively to my words; 
but just as I was kneeling down to pray 
again, he started up in his cot, and, looking 
fearfully around, grasped my hand with all 
the energy of a drowning man, and wildly 
shrieking and falling backwards, expired in 
indescribable agony. — Kev. J. Statham's In- 
dian Recollections. 



PROCRASTINATION. 

A correspondent of the New York Chris- 
tian Advocate has shown in vivid colours 
the danger of delay : the statement forms a 



GOD DISPLAYED. 125 

living comment on Dr. Young's well-known 
line — 

"Be wise to-day — 'tis madness to defer." 

" When I was travelling/' he observes, 
"in the state of Massachusetts, twenty-six 
years ago, after preaching one evening in the 
town of — — , a very serious-looking young 
man arose, and wished to address the assem- 
bly. After obtaining leave, he spoke as fol- 
lows : — ' My friends, about one year ago I 
set out, in company with a young man of my 
acquaintance, to seek the salvation of my 
soul. For several weeks we went on to- 
gether ; we laboured together, and often re- 
newed our covenant, never to give over seek- 
ing till we obtained the religion of Jesus. But 
all at once the young man neglected attend- 
ing meeting, appeared to turn his back on all 
the means of grace, and grew so shy of me 
that I could scarcely get an opportunity to 
speak with him. His strange conduct gave 
me much painful anxiety of mind ; but still I 
felt resolved to obtain the salvation of my 
own soul, or perish, making the publican's 
plea. After a few days, a friend informed 
me that my young companion had received 
an invitation to attend a ball, and was deter- 
mined to go. I went immediately to him, 
and, with tears in my eyes, endeavoured to 
persuade him to change his purpose, and to 
go with me that evening to a prayer-meeting. 
I pleaded with him, but in vain. He told 
me, when we parted, that I must not give 
11* 



126 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

him up as lost ; for, after he had attended the 
ball, he intended to make a business of seek- 
ing religion. The appointed evening came, 
and he went to the ball, and I went to the 
prayer-meeting. Soon after the meeting 
opened, it pleased God, in answer to prayer, 
to turn my spiritual captivity, and make my 
soul rejoice in his justifying love. Soon after 
the ball opened, my young friend was stand- 
ing at the head of the ball-room, with the 
hand of a young lady in his hand, preparing 
.to lead down the dance ; and while the mu- 
sician was tuning his violin, without one mo- 
ment's warning, the young man reeled back, 
and fell dead on the floor. I was imme- 
diately sent for, to assist in devising some 
means to convey his remains to his father's 
house. You will be better able to judge 
what were the emotions of my heart when I 
tell you, that that young man was my own 
brother \" 



A FLEET DRIVEN BACK. 

The following incident is related in the life 
of Mr. James Meikle, Surgeon in the British 
Navy, well known for his devotional works, 
" Solitude Sweetened," &c. 

At Leghorn, he had occasion to remark 
the interposition of Providence in a very sin 



GOD DISPLAYED. 127 

gular manner in his behalf. Several of the 
gentlemen belonging to the ship had formed 
a party in order to visit the city of Pisa, 
which is not more than twelve miles distant, 
and entertain themselves with the sight of its 
famous hanging tower, and the other curiosi- 
ties of the place. Mr. Meikle, starting in 
the morning of the 12th of April, went on 
foot by himself, and enjoyed, he says, by the 
way, " pleasant meditations on the love of 
Christ f the rest followed on horseback. The 
afternoon was far advanced before they had 
sufficiently gratified their curiosity. In the 
evening Mr. Meikle's companions returned ; 
but he, being fatigued, and observing that the 
wind was foul, so that the fleet which the 
Portland was to convoy could not sail, ven- 
tured to remain in Pisa. Early next morn- 
ing, he set out for Leghorn ; but the wind 
had changed during the night, and before he 
could reach the city, the fleet had weighed, 
and were already several leagues on their 
way. 

By this occurrence he was thrown into in- 
conceivable perplexity. In a strange place, 
ignorant of the language, with no clothes 
except what were on his body, with little 
money in his pocket, without one personal ac- 
quaintance, and even few Englishmen being 
left in the place to take an interest in the 
distresses of their countryman; afraid, be- 
sides, of the fate of his papers and other 
property on board, of the loss of what was 
due to him on the ship's books, and of being 



128 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

detained long before he could find an oppor- 
tunity of getting home ; what was to be done? 
In his distress he applied to the English Con- 
sul ; but every expedient suggested by him 
and some others whom he consulted, mis- 
gave. 

After thus spending the remainder of Fri- 
day, and the whole of Saturday, in fruitless 
contrivances how to extricate himself from 
the embarrassments of his situation, the Sab- 
bath came, on which he resolved as much as 
possible to banish care, and to commit him- 
self to God. It was his custom, when any 
enemy appeared, or when at any time he 
went ashore, to put his Bible in his pocket, 
that in any event he might not be deprived 
of the consolation which the perusal of it is 
calculated to afford ; and on this occasion he 
remarks, that " he was so happy as to have 
along with him his dear companion, the 
Bible." Early on the morning, therefore, 
of the 15th of April, he retired to a forest 
which lay a considerable way out of town 
on the road to Pisa, and spent the day in 
devotional exercises. He sung the sixty- 
third Psalm, " a psalm written in a wilder- 
ness, which," says he, "gave me great com- 
fort in my wilderness." He read the hun- 
dred and second Psalm, which " well suits 
the afflicted when he is overwhelmed, and 
poureth out his complaint before the Lord." 
He engaged repeatedly in prayer, and in 
meditation on God and the dispensations of 
his providence towards his people, and him- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 129 

self in particular. As the day advanced, the 
wind sprung up, and it began to rain. He 
took shelter from the storm in the trunk of a 
hollow tree, and standing within it, wrote 
several verses of poetry, expressive of confi- 
dence in God. 

After the rain ceased, he drew nearer the 
city, and, reclining on a bank, wrote a few 
verses ; but the wind still blowing high, the 
evening growing chill, and he himself becom- 
ing faint, for he had tasted nothing all that 
day but a draught of cold water, and eaten 
little the day before, he returned to the city. 
Calling at a house to which he was kindly 
invited, he had not sat long before informa- 
tion was brought him that the English fleet 
had been driven back by contrary winds, and 
were arrived in the roads. Animated by this 
delightful, but unexpected intelligence of an 
event which so evidently marked the care of 
Providence, he made all possible haste to- 
wards the shore ; but it was late, it blew 
hard, and it was morning before he could 
get aboard. As he rowed towards the ship, 
it fell calmer, the wind became fair, the sig- 
nal for sailing was hoisted ; and within two 
hours after he entered the Portland, the fleet 
were under weigh with a fair wind and a fresh 
gale. 

How ignorant are we of the gracious in- 
tention of events, of which at the moment 
we are disposed to complain ! The wind 
which chilled him, and the rain which drove 
him for shelter into the trunk of a tree, were 



130 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

the instruments of his deliverance. "This 
interposition of Providence for me," he says, 
"was astonishing; that God should send a 
contrary gust of wind out of his treasures, 
and turn a whole fleet out of their intended 
course for one poor worm ! and, whenever 
that end was accomplished, ordered a fair 
wind to blow, so that we were obliged to put 
back no more." It appears to have struck 
even the thoughtless sailors with surprise ; 
for they hailed him as he approached the 
vessel, in their rough and irreligious manner, 
" Come along, you praying d — 1 ;" adding, 
that the winds would not permit them to 
leave Leghorn without him. 

His first care was to acknowledge God. 
u I had pleasant reflections," he says, " on 
the sudden and sweet change which Provi- 
dence had made in my circumstances. The 
other day I was in a forest in Italy, soli- 
tary, left behind, and friendless ; but now in 
my own ship, and already many leagues ad- 
vanced in our intended voyage." 



SELF-DESTRUCTION. 



A young man of considerable interest and 
intelligence, a native of America, who be- 
longed to a family of great respectability and 
had received a religious education, as he ad- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 131 

vanced to manhood, read the productions of 
Voltaire's infidel pen, from which and other 
deistical publications, he learned to reason 
against Christianity, and deny the authority 
and inspiration of the Scriptures. The natu- 
ral consequences followed. He forsook pub- 
lic worship, became a stranger to peace, and, 
affecting to drown the voice of conscience, 
usually spent his Sabbaths at a tavern. 

After returning on one occasion from a 
voyage to the West Indies, he was informed 
by a pious lady of the death of one of his in- 
fidel companions, and likewise of the horror 
of mind, which he displayed while he ac- 
knowledged and renounced his delusions. 
But his only reply was, "I am sorry my 
friend died like a coward." Such cowardice, 
however, he himself, like thousands of other 
infidels, was made to experience ; and so 
great were the horrors of his conscience that 
reason was dethroned. Three times he at- 
tempted to hang himself and being brought 
at last to a benevolent institution with his 
throat cut, was prevented for a time from in- 
truding into the presence of his terrible Judge. 

When he was favoured with a partial res- 
pite from his horrors, he would read the 
Bible, until he came to a passage which he 
did not understand, when he would seek 
information ; which, if it proved not satisfac- 
tory, his rage suddenly rose to a paroxysm, 
and he hurled the Holy Scriptures from him 
with the greatest fury. 

Shortly before his death, a brother, who 



132 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

had been confirmed by his influence in un- 
belief, came to converse with him, when a 
deeply interesting and solemn interview 
took place. 

" Ben," said the dying man, " you see the 
state I am now in, and you know how I was 
brought to this condition. My present ago- 
nies are unutterable, and what must damna- 
tion be to guilty sinners ?** 

" 0, fudge ! fudge, John !" rejoined the 
brother, " cheer up, don't make a fool of 
yourself! why should you trouble yourself 
about religion and be gloomy ?" 

" Yes, Ben," he replied, " I have made a 
fool of myself, by reading those accursed 
books, and despising the Bible. You cannot 
laugh me out of my present condition. You 
know that I am miserable now ; and I tell 
you that my false notions of religion have 
produced all those sufferings that you wit- 
ness. Ben, I am in hell ! 0, be warned by 
me ! You cannot teach me anything new 
against the Bible, for I taught you all the 
infidelity which you know ; but if this were 
my last breath, I should say, change your 
way of thinking, for your present plan will 
not answer." But, alas ! no salutary effect 
was produced by this conversation on the 
mind of the scoffing brother ; for he departed, 
saying, " Oh ! poh, John ! don't make a fool 
of yourself !" 

The mental agonies of this unhappy man 
were great indeed, and his sufferings he con- 
ceived unlike those of other men. His were 



GOD DISPLAYED. 133 

considered as the agonies of one already lost ; 
who must necessarily suffer without cessa- 
tion and without end. The god of this 
world, into whose service he had voluntarily 
entered, appeared to have taken full posses- 
sion of and exercised complete dominion 
over him ; for in an hour, when no suspicion 
was entertained by any about him, he fas- 
tened his cravat to the grates of his window, 
and while his back was against the wall, 
kneeled down, bended his body forward, and 
in the most resolute manner, strangled him- 
self. 



THE ROYAL PERSECUTOR'S END. 

Philip II., of Spain, was one of the most 
violent persecutors of the church since the 
time of Dioclesian. His whole purpose and 
desire evidently appeared to be, to extirpate 
Protestantism from his dominions. In order 
to accomplish this sanguinary purpose, he 
devised and established the horrid Inquisition. 
Of his cruelties history tells sufficient. All 
his attempts, however, proved abortive ; and, 
subsequently, everything like prosperity and 
success fled from him. After the loss of sev- 
eral millions of money, an immense number 
of his subjects, and a considerable part of the 
Netherlands, his boasted and invincible ar- 
mada was, by the interposition of Heaven^ 
12 



134 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

broken at sea, when the object of its outfit 
appeared on the eve of being carried into 
effect against England. Here, however, the 
hand of the Lord rested not. Jehovah smote 
him on his body with a fearful and strange 
disease, or rather a number of diseases at 
once, which the skill of his physicians could 
neither account for, nor furnish a remedy. 
Boils of the most afflictive character covered 
his body, from which was emitted putrid 
matter of so offensive a nature, that his at- 
tendants were unable to endure the effluvia, 
while vermin bred so profusely on the parts 
as to mock all attempts to destroy them. 
Thus, for years, was he allowed to linger on 
in unexampled affliction and torment, as if to 
afford evidence of God's displeasure against 
him for having caused so many of his saints 
to endure the cruel torments of the Inquisition. 
His end was equally dreadful. 



THE THRONE VACATED. 

The celebrated Charles V. is distiifguished 
both for the success which crowned his en- 
terprises, and the judgments which after- 
wards followed him. His triumphs were of 
the most splendid kind, and his victories 
frequent, until he turned his hand against 
the cause of God, in the persecution and 



GOD DISPLAYED. 135 

slaughter of his servants. Having bathed 
his sword in the blood of the Protestants, 
and cruelly and unjustly persecuted the Duke 
of Saxony j, his public character began to fall 
even in the estimation of such as united with 
him in his cruelties. His affairs visibly de- 
clined, as if an unseen hand marred them. 
At length he was compelled to fly to the 
most remote part of his empire ; and there, 
in seclusion, seek refuge from his pursuers, 
until at length, broken down with melan- 
choly, fear, and trouble, in order to save his 
life, he resigned his empire, and sunk into 
that retired condition which his cruelties had 
procured for him. 



A PAINFUL DISAPPOINTMENT. 

King Henry II., of France, was a most 
violent and determined enemy of the Chris- 
tians. His persecutions and cruelties have 
fixed a blot upon his memory of the most in- 
delible kind. Having caused sentence of 
death to be passed upon Amas de Burgh, he 
observed, with a ferocious cruelty, such as 
displayed the enmity of his mind, "These 
eyes of mine shall see thee burn !" His ex- 
pectations, however, were cut off; for shortly 
before the execution took place, while en- 
gaged in a tournament with Count Montgo- 



THE PROVIDENCE OF 



mery, he received from that nobleman a 
thrust in his eye from a spear, of which in a 
short time he died. 



THE FALL OF AMBITION. 

Mr. Patrick Adamson was once a preacher 
of highly distinguished popularity. Pride and 
ambition, however, appear to have influenced 
him rather than devotedness to his sacred 
calling. By his influence and popular talents 
he rose rapidly in church preferment until he 
obtained the mitre, and became Archbishop 
of St. Andrew's. Dazzled with the grandeur 
and dignity to which he had attained, and 
vain of the powers which his office combined, 
he commenced a violent persecution against 
his inferior brethren ; at which he was fre- 
quently heard to say, that of whatever else 
he might be deprived, of three things he was 
certain — his riches, his learning, and the 
king's favour. But how vain was his boast- 
ing ! A short time only elapsed before, in 
the face of ail the people, the judgments of 
God overtook him, and his pride and cruelty 
became his ruin. His intellectual powers, 
of which he boasted, withered ; so that 
although his eloquence had been greatly ad- 
mired, he was unable to express himself even 
in a few words with coherency ; his riches 
made unto themselves wings and flew away, 



GOD DISPLAYED. 137 

until he was obliged to seek and subsist on 
charity from those very ministers he had per- 
secuted ; while the king's favour, in which 
he had trusted, not only was lost, but he be- 
came so far the object of his abhorrence, that 
the prelate himself declared, " he was sure 
the king did care more for the worst of his 
dogs than for him f 9 and thus, cast off by 
the world, whose favour he had sought, and 
by Him a whose favour is life," but whose 
favour he had rejected, he lived and died in 
the greatest misery and want. 

O, how wretched 
Is that poor man, that hangs on princes' favours! 
And h^and every one, that God's blest smile 
And his soul's peace, barters for earthly trash. 



A FAMILY CUT OFF. 

Bishop Spotswood was the successor of 
Bishop Adamson to the bishopric of St. An- 
drew's, and heir to him in many of the worst 
traits of human character. Subtil and de- 
signing, he strove in every way to advance 
the prelacy, which the church's reformation 
from popery had disclaimed, and to over- 
throw and destroy her discipline and liber- 
ties. At length he succeeded, by craft and 
intrigue, in establishing himself in the chan- 
cellorship of Scotland, and causing his eldest 
12* 



138 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

son to be made a baron of Fife, and his se- 
cond son to be elected President of the Session; 
while his daughter was united in marriage to 
Rosline, then a considerable baron. Having 
thus established himself and family in power 
and affluence, he fancied he should never be 
moved, and, therefore, put forth his hand to 
persecute and imprison such as fell beneath 
his displeasure. A pious and accomplished 
individual, of the name of Welch, was thrown 
into prison, at Blackness ; and while there, 
he predicted, in reference to the bishop, that 
he would be as a stone cast out of a sling by- 
God's hand ; that his name would rot, and a 
malediction rest upon his whole family. 
The event proved the correctness 9[ the pre- 
sage ; for in 1688 he was excommunicated 
by the church, and fled into England, where, 
in extreme poverty and misery, he died. His 
eldest son, Sir John Spotswood, was brought 
to beg his bread ; his second son, who was 
President of the Session, was taken at the 
battle of Philiphauch, and beheaded at St. 
Andrew's ; while his youngest son was be- 
headed at Edinburgh. The estate, which 
should have descended to the daughter in 
consequence of her marriage with Rosline, 
devolved on another family and she was left 
destitute. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 139 

THE PERJURED MINISTER PUNISHED. 

Mr. Andrew Foster was minister of Dun- 
fermline, and during the sitting of the assem- 
bly at Glasgow, in 1610, was sent thither, as 
commissioned by his brethren, having previ- 
ously solemnly sworn, as he should answer 
for it at the bar of God, that he would not 
consent to any alteration being made in the 
government of the church. Having, how- 
ever, arrived at the convention, the Earl of 
Dunbar bribed him to vote for prelacy ; and, 
forgetting the solemn engagement into which 
he had entered, he did so ; by which means 
power was given to the enemies of the re- 
formed religion, and many of its ministers 
were persecuted. Foster returned home, and 
was almost immediately seized with sickness 
of body and horror of conscience ; so that, 
under extreme horror of mind, he fled out 
of the pulpit, from which he was going to 
preach. His malady so increased, that Mr. 
John Murray, who had been silenced by the 
bishop for the truth's sake, occupied his place. 
At length his disease arose to distraction and 
madness ; and he died, execrated in memory 
and overwhelmed in debt, a fearful example 
of the judgment of God. 



JUDGMENT IN KIND. 

David Macbryar was a member of the 
Scottish Parliament, and one of the Commis- 



140 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

sioners of the Burghs. In the county where 
he resided he had rendered himself famous 
for the grossness of his habits, and the lewd- 
ness of his conduct. If in any thing he ex- 
ceeded in wickedness, it was in the degree 
of violence and rage with which he perse- 
cuted all who feared God. His whole ener- 
gies appeared directed to this point ; so that 
in parliament, and wherever opportunity pre- 
sented, he vented upon them his malice, un- 
der the opprobrious name of fanatics. A 
course of prodigality and profanity led te 
their natural consequences — loss of property 
and loss of credit ; and he was obliged to fly 
from his creditors to escape a prison. But 
the hand of God followed him — from it he 
could not flee. While walking one day 
alone and melancholy, some soldiers, who in 
those distracted times sought most furiously 
to harass the servants of Christ, were in pur- 
suit of them. One of the party perceiving 
Macbryar, and judging him to be, from his 
pensive movements, what was called a fanatic, 
sought to apprehend him; he however, made 
a considerable resistance, and while strug- 
gling to escape, was run through his body 
with a sword, and died immediately on the 
spot. Thus he who persecuted the people of 
God, under the name of fanatics, was by one 
of his own party put to death, under the 
supposition that he himself belonged to that 
proscribed body which was branded by that 
name. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 141 



A WARNING DREAM. 

July 29, 1821. (Lord's day.) The sun 
rose bright from the sea, which was lightly 
in motion, the wind being moderate. We 
have found this indeed a Sabbath, a day of 
rest and holy pleasure, amidst the loneliness 
of savage lands in view, and meeting oceans, 
on which we are sailing, round Cape Horn. 
This celebrated point, " placed far amidst the 
melancholy main," presents none of those 
tremendous horrors (though still in the depth 
of winter) with which the captain and crew 
tell us it is almost always invested. Mr. 
Tyerman preached in the morning from Psalm 
cxxi. 4 : " Behold, He that keepeth Israel 
shall neither slumber nor sleep." At the 
close of his discourse he mentioned the fol- 
lowing circumstance. "Yesterday was the 
anniversary of a great and very remarkable 
deliverance which I experienced in the year 
1793. At that time I was intimate with 
several young men as gay and trifling as my- 
self; and we frequently spent our Sabbaths 
in pleasure on the Thames. Early in the 
week, on the occasion referred to, I and four 
others had planned a Sunday party down the 
river ; to make the most of it, we agreed to 
embark on Saturday afternoon, and proceed 
to Gravesend. On Friday night, when I lay 
down to rest, a transient misgiving, whether 
it was right so to profane the Sabbath of the 
Lord, gave me a little uneasiness ; but I over 



142 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

came the monitory feeling, and fell asleep. 
On Saturday morning, when I awoke, the 
thought again came upon me, but again I 
resisted it, and resolved to meet my com- 
panions in the afternoon. I was about to 
rise, but while I mused I fell asleep again, 
and dreamed. I thought myself in a certain 
place, whither divine Providence often led 
me at that season of my life. Here a gentle- 
man called me to him, saying, that he had a 
letter for me, which I went to receive from 
his hand. When I reached him, he had 
opened the enclosure, and appeared to be 
reading the contents. I imagined then that 
I looked over his shoulder, and perceived 
that the letter was closely written, but a pen 
had been drawn through every line, and had 
obliterated all the words. Wondering what 
this could mean, I was going to take hold of 
the letter, when a large black seal presented 
itself to my sight, and so startled me that 
forthwith I woke, with this sentence upon 
my mind, 'You shall not go/' Though I 
had never been in any way superstitious re- 
garding dreams, this so affected m, and the 
words, 'You shall not go, seemed so per- 
petually sounding in my ears, and haunting 
my imagination, that I determined to be 
obedient and not go ; persuaded that some 
evil would befall me if I did. I spent that 
day and the two following in great anguish 
and anxiety, expecting hourly to hear some- 
thing that would explain this singular pre- 
sentiment. No tidings, however, arrived till 



GOD DISPLAYED. 143 

Tuesday morning, when I read in a news- 
paper the following paragraph. < Last Sun- 
day, in the afternoon, as a boat, with four 
young gentlemen, a waterman, and a boy, 

belonging to Mr. , of Wapping, was 

coming up the river, in Bugsby's Hole, a little 
below Blackwall, a gust of wind upset the 
boat, and all on board perished.' That was 
the identical boat on which I was to have 
embarked. I could scarcely believe my eyes ; 
I read the paragraph again and again. There 
it was, and there it remained, speaking the 
same words. I cannot express the horror 
and consternation of my mind. I was con- 
strained to exclaim, 'This is the finger of 
God ! Who am I, that God should in so 
wonderful a manner interpose for my deliver- 
ance ? What a warning against. Sabbath 
breaking ! What a call to devote myself to 
the Lord and his service !' — A warning which 
I took, and a call which I humbly hope I was 
thenceforward enabled to obey : < For God 
speaketh once, yea twice ; yet man perceiv- 
eth it not. In a dream, in a vision of the 
night, when deep sleep falleth upon man, in 
slumberings upon the bed ; then he openeth 
the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction, 
that he may withdraw man from his pur- 
pose, and hide pride from man. He keepeth 
back his soul from the pit, and his life from 
perishing.' " Job xxxiii. 14, IS. — Tyerman 
§ Bennet's Journal. 



144 THE PROVIDENCE. OF 

SORROW ON THE SEA. 
" Destruction from God was a terror to me." — Job xxxi. 23 

There lived, a short time since, in the north 
of England, three little boys, whose names 
were Davis, Carlisle, and Fostil. Davis and 
Carlisle were the sons of fishermen. One 
Sunday afternoon, these three little boys, for- 
getting that God had forbidden them to find 
their own pleasure on his holy day, amused 
themselves by going out to sea in a small 
boat, about thirteen feet long. There was 
one oar, and one small sail in their little boat. 
When they had got out a few miles from 
land, they thought they saw some other boys 
coming out in a boat to fetch them back 
again, so they set up their small sail, that 
they might follow their own pleasure still 
longer. The blessing of God did not go with 
them. The wind blew from the shore, and. 
sad to tell, their boat was driven out still fur- 
ther to sea. At last, to their great sorrow, 
the land was no longer to be seen. How often 
they tried to get back to the shore — but alas ! 
they could not. Perhaps they said to each 
other, Oh, that we had gone this afternoon to 
school, or to the house of God ; all this sor- 
row would not have come upon us ! Night 
came on, and it was now so dark that ihey 
could no longer try to get back, and a strong 
gale of wind drove them yet further into the 
open sea. Morning came ; but not a speck 
of land was to be seen, nor was any ship 



GOD DISPLAYED 145 

near them. They were now in great trou- 
ble, for they had not one mouthful of food, 
nor any water in their little boat, neither did 
any one of them know how to get back to 
land. The eldest boy, Davis, fifteen years 
of age, fell sick, and was ill all day; this 
made them more unhappy. The sun again 
set, and there seemed no hope of their being 
saved from a watery grave. How fearful to 
die, when we are not at peace with God, 
when our sins are not washed away in the 
blood of Christ, and our hearts are not the 
dwelling-place of his good Spirit ! Their 
parents on shore tried to find their poor little 
boys : but they could not. Tuesday morning 
dawned ; all day they looked for some ship, 
and hoped once more to see the land ; it was 
all in vain, night came on again, and the 
three poor little fellows, tired, hungry, and 
stiff with cold, lay down in the bottom of 
their boat, which was driven about by the 
wind and waves. — When Carlisle and Fostil 
awoke in the morning, they looked at Davis, 
who was lying quite still. He never moved 
again ; he was dead. Oh ! let not your last 
end be like his. This the poor children felt 
was the worst of all. The sea did not run 
very high, and their boat floated about all 
this third day; but now they had still less 
hope than ever. Night once more drew its 
curtain over the sky, and the two little sailors, 
with the dead body of their companion, spent 
the dark hours of the fourth night on the 
open sea. But God looked from heaven 
13 



146 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

upon their grief, and in wrath remembered 
mercy. In the afternoon of Thursday they 
saw a sail in the distance ; the ship drew 
toward them, and while they looked on it, 
their eyes filled with tears of joy. The kind 
captain at once took the poor boys on board 
his ship ; but they were very ill indeed, as 
they had not had any food since Sunday 
afternoon. While the poor little fellows were 
being put on board the ship, they saw the 
sailors were going to throw the body of their 
companion overboard. They .cried aloud 
most bitterly, and begged that they might 
take home the dead body of Davis ; but a 
heavy splash in the water was the answer to 
their cries, and the waves hid Davis from 
their sight. The captain was a Dutchman, 
and he was going back to his own country ; 
but when he got there, he was so kind as to 
send the two boys back to London. From 
London they set out for the north of Eng- 
land, and once more reached home, to the 
very great joy of their unhappy parents. 
What a tale they had to tell ! Let none that 
read it forget that sin and sorrow must ever 
go together ; but the ways of God are safe 
and happy, and his paths are peace. 



THE INFIDEL RECLAIMED. 

A clergyman in one of the Western States 
gives the following interesting account : — 



GOD DISPLAYED. 147 

"Preaching on a gloomy Sabbath some 
years ago, in a low state of health, to a few 
people, I observed a young stranger in the 
congregation whose intelligent countenance 
and speaking eye riveted my attention. 
Never before had I seen so intense an ex- 
pression of countenance. His whole soul 
seemed absorbed, and he received the word 
of life as if he indeed thirsted for the waters 
of salvation. The thought flashed across my 
mind — I have few hearers to-day, but one is 
a fiearer. He receives the truth as if it 
were his life. The subject was the complete- 
ness of the believer in Christ, Col. 2. 10, 
"And ye are complete in him." And the 
intense attention of my auditor was continued 
to the close. After the service he called on 
me with a friend, gave me a brief history of 
himself, and desired religious counsel. He 
was a surgeon in the army, and had through 
all his preparatory course been not only a 
decided but a zealous infidel. The child of 
Christian parents, he had yet broken through 
all the restraints of a Christian home, and 
neglected and even defied the God in whom 
his breath was, and whose were all his ways. 
He was a man of high intellectual character 
and virtuous habits, so far as an infidel can 
be virtuous ; that is, he was free from those 
outward vices which degrade the character. 
He was, as I learned afterwards from other 
sources, a young man of high promise ; but 
the deadly blight of infidelity had withered 
his best affections, and turned him into a de- 



14S THE PROVIDENCE OF 

spairing, wretched and ruined man. He had 
become convinced of the error of his creed, 
and his sin in the sight of God, and as his 
convictions deepened, his anxiety increased, 
until at length despair took possession of his 
bosom. He had been, at the time I met him, 
for about eight months in a deplorable state 
of mind ; more and more convinced of the 
enormity of his sin in the sight of God, with- 
out one single ray of hope to illumine the 
darkness of his mind. His shattered frame 
and gloomy countenance, told in some degree 
the story of his dreadful agonies. His ner- 
vous system was dreadfully affected, his 
mind partook of the infirmity, and " the per- 
dition of ungodly men" had been for months 
his single sleeping and waking thought. In 
a state like this, completely unfitted for busi- 
ness, he was travelling for his health, and 
without designing it he remained in our vil- 
lage over the Sabbath. The family with 
whom he was staying attended another 
church — but in some way entirely inexplica- 
ble he was led to our sanctuary. The single 
theme of the Christian ministry was that 
morning exhibited in its most precious as- 
pect — the unsearchable riches of Christ. 
Here every want of the human mind is met, 
and even the despairing sinner may yet have 
hope. My young friend, for such I may 
now call him, heard, and lived, and rejoiced. 
The first ray of hope that had ever dawned 
upon his mind, as he informed me, was 
while listening to this discourse. No wonder 



GOD DISPLAYED. 149 

that he listened with intense emotion. He 
declared that if a revelation from heaven had 
been made of his peculiar case, the discourse 
could not have been more appropriate to his 
wants, and with a radiant countenance and 
flashing eye he sprang to his feet exclaiming, 
" there is yet hope for me ; Lamb of God, 
may I yet hope? ,? He who commanded 
the light to shine out of darkness, shone in 
his heart, and gave him the light of the 
knowledge of the glory of God in the face 
of Jesus Christ. 

He remained in the village eight or ten 
days, for the special purpose of receiving 
religious counsel. His nervous system was 
so impaired, that he had little control over 
himself. There is little doubt that had not 
the consolations of the gospel come to his 
aid, his shattered frame would soon have 
given way under his unearthly struggles. 
The word of God which had so suddenly 
illumined his darkness, operated as a pre- 
cious balm. When reminded of the prom- 
ises of Christ, and when his mind for a short 
time was fastened upon them, a heavenly 
radiance would light up his countenance — 
but when the impression faded away, his 
gloom and despair would return with fearful 
force. During the few days of his sojourn 
in our village, he had a number of terrible 
conflicts with the powers of darkness. A 
skeptical mind might attribute these to ner- 
vous derangement ; but it was evident that 
Satan took advantage of his infirmity to 
13* 



150 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

tempt and harass him. He was frequently 
in my study, and there in his fits of despair 
and yet encouraged by the gleam of hope 
that now irradiated the darkness of his mind, 
he would throw himself on his knees, and 
pour out his soul to God with an intensity 
of supplication which none could manifest 
except those who looked upon things unseen 
and eternal. 

His favourite prayer was, " Lamb of God, 
pity me, pity me." Once at midnight, I was 
sent for, to visit him at his lodgings and found 
him writhing in the most inconceivable ago- 
nies of mind, uttering his unceasing prayer — 
« Lamb of God, pity me, pity me." On such 
occasions, which during the first four days 
of our acquaintance occurred a number of 
times, a few pertinent promises of Christ 
would quell his despairing cries, and turn his 
mourning into gladness. Once during the 
week, in the house of God, his emotions 
overpowered him, and in the conflict, of his 
despair at the close of the service, he threw 
himself upon his knees in the pew, and with 
mingled despair and hope remained praying 
until I went to him. Bending over him and 
reciting gently a few promises of Christ, his 
despairing feelings immediately subsided, and 
he arose and went on his way rejoicing. I 
found that on all such occasions a passage 
of Scripture, and especially a promise of 
Christ, as soon as his attention could be 
riveted upon it, would allay the ravings 
of despair, and excite his hope in God, and 



GOD DISPLAYED. 151 

sometimes lead him to triumph. He tran- 
scribed many passages and promises in his 
note book, and resorted to them when his 
temptations returned upon him. A deistical 
friend and physician who attended him, 
wondered at the power that was exerted 
over him by these simple means. At first 
he was disposed to attribute the remarkable 
change so suddenly produced to anodynes 
which he had given him, but the influence 
was at times exerted when he had taken 
none, and his friend became convinced that 
it was more than human power that could 
thus say, " peace, be still." Blessed be God, 
that deistical friend soon experienced in his 
own bosom the same divine power, and his 
wonder ceased — and he became convinced 
that this was the finger of God. One remarix 
which he made, and the manner in which it 
was expressed, is indelibly impressed upon 
my memory. Turning upon me his expres- 
sive eyes he said solemnly, " I need no proof 
that what the Scriptures say of the perdition 
of ungodly men, is true. I can never doubt 
the reality of hell. I have experienced for 
months its unutterable agonies. All the 
images of despair and wretchedness em- 
ployed by the sacred writers are fit expres- 
sions to denote the state of my mind for 
some months past. Indeed, no language 
can depict the utter desolation and despair 
of a soul enlightened to see its vileness, and 
to see God as he is in the glory of his nature, 
under the certainty of his avenging justice. " 



152 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

He then burst forth in a strain of exalted 
praise to God who had " taken his feet out 
of the horrible pit," and to Jesus who had 
delivered him from the wrath to come. 

The Sun of Righteousness had risen upon 
him with healing in his beams. His health 
improved — his faith became steadfast, and 
he went on his way rejoicing in God and 
highly grateful to the Christian friends who 
had extended to him their sympathy and 
counsel. He was, when I heard from him 
last, a surgeon in the United States army, and 
a useful member of the church of Christ. 



THE SHIPWRECKED SAILOR. 

It was a dark and dreary night, as the bark 
Griffon entered the Gulf Stream. The wind 
whistled fearfully through our rigging ; the 
foaming and troubled waters were occasion- 
ally revealed to us by lurid flashes of light- 
ning — such lightning as is seen only on the 
broad ocean. Every man was on the alert ; 
the captain pacing the deck, with a troubled 
countenance ; his eye cast often to the wind- 
ward, anxiously awaiting for the abatement 
of the storm. A heavy sea now broke upon 
our quarter, carrying away the yawl boat, 
which was lashed to the stern. Before we 
were well aware of the extent of the injury, 



GOD DISPLAYED. 153 

a heavy crash announced to us the destruc- 
tion of the long-boat and bulwarks. Orders 
were now given to wear ship to the north. 
The storm increasing, we were obliged to 
lay to, under close-reefed main-top-sail, the 
sea threatening every moment to engulf us 
in its angry billows. For twenty-four hours 
we endured the most painful suspense, and 
harassed with doubts of ever seeing again 
the beloved faces we had left in our own 
happy New England, five months before. 
The storm passed away. The sun arose 
brightly over the blue waters, and with 
gratitude in our hearts to Him who guides 
the wind and waves, we steered our home- 
ward course, with a gallant breeze filling 
our sails. 

One of the crew, while repairing the sails 
aloft, descried a small dark spot upon the 
waters. The word was given, and the cap- 
tain, applying his glass, could see one dis- 
mantled mast rising against the horizon. 
Every man was now on the lookout, and we 
discovered a signal, rent into shreds, which 
proved to be English. Our captain sup- 
posed her to be abandoned, but as we 
neared her, we could see several objects — 
one of them appeared to be walking. We 
determined to use our utmost endeavours, in 
hopes of saving some fellow creature from a 
watery grave. We tacked ship, and stood 
for the wreck, and with much difficulty suc- 
ceeded in lowering our only remaining boat, 
containing four men, who, straining every 



154 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

nerve, boarded the shattered wreck, where 
they found three human beings, nearly ex 
hausted from hunger and fatigue. One of 
them having more strength than the rest, 
had hoisted the signal we had seen in the 
distance. Another was lying upon the quar- 
ter-deck, wrapped in a remnant of sail-cloth, 
expecting every moment to be his last. He 
now revived. Hearing strange voices, they 
informed us, by signs, they had been in that 
situation for nine days, and had been living 
upon raw potatoes, which answered for food 
and water. Not a moment was to be lost. 
We placed them in the boat, and were just 
leaving the wreck, when a large Newfound- 
land dog, before unnoticed, sprang suddenly 
into the boat. With this unexpected visitor, 
we reached our ship. Our captain stood in 
the gangway, to welcome them aboard ; 
where, speechless with gratitude, they knelt 
in silent prayer and thanksgiving to Al- 
mighty God. Accommodations were speed- 
ily make for their benefit, and every sailor's 
chest was at their service. 

The wreck proved to be the British Brig 
Dove, of Liverpool, N. S., bound to the West 
Indies, which had been capsized on the 25th 
of December, in a gale from the W. N. W., 
and remained in that situation until Jan. 3d. 
The rest of the crew had been drowned. 
The dog had lived upon salt butter, which 
the men had not dared to eat, and no sooner 
had he sprung upon our decks, than he 
swallowed all the water within his reach. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 155 

My feelings upon this occasion I cannot 
attempt to describe, and happy were we all 
that Providence had destined us for an act, 
which we will have occasion to remember 
all our lives. 

On our arrival at Boston, these forlorn 
sailors were sent, by the British Consul, to 
their homes. 



THE RUSH BASKET IN THE RIVER. 

There was once a man to whom God spake, 
and told him to leave his home, his town, 
and his country — and go off into a strange 
land, and live under a tent, and never again 
have a home. The man asked no reasons, 
but obeyed. After this, he had a son, his 
only son. God told him that his son should 
live and grow up, and should be the fore- 
father of great nations, millions of people. 
But after this, God told this man to go and 
take this boy of his, and take his life, and 
burn up his body with fire. God gave him 
no reasons for this direction. The good man 
prepared to obey. He got the wood ready 
to burn the body of his dear child ; he bound 
his hands and feet, and put out his hand, and 
took the knife with which to take his life. 
God then told him not to do it, but to take a 
ram, which he would find close by, and kill 



156 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

him. This was faith in God, for Abraham 
(for that was his name, and you will find the 
whole account in the 22d chapter of Genesis) 
obeyed God, because he believed God was 
wise, and holy, and good, though he could 
not understand why he told him to do this. 

Suppose you had lived while the children 
of Israel lived in Egypt. And suppose you 
had walked out some pleasant day, just at 
dusk, down towards the river. Look, now, 
and see what is before you. Yonder is a 
cluster of tall trees, and just under them is a 
little cottage or hovel. They are poor folks 
who live there. See, the house is small, and 
has no paint on it, no windows, nothing about 
it that looks comfortable. This hovel is the 
home of slaves. The man and the woman 
are poor slaves. But just look in. What is 
that woman doing ? See her weaving a lit- 
tle basket with rushes, which she has gath- 
ered from the banks of the river. See ! she 
weeps as she twists every flag ; and by the 
moving of her lips, you see that she is pray- 
ing. She has finished it. Now watch 
her. Do you see her go to a corner of the 
room, and there kneel down, and weep, and 
pray over a beautiful little boy ? See her 
embrace and kiss him. Now she lays him 
in the little basket ; now she calls her little 
daughter, and tells her to take her little bro- 
ther, and carry him, and lay him down by 
the cold river's side. There ! now she takes 
the last look of her sweet babe — now she 
goes back weeping into the house, and lifting 



GOD DISPLAYED. 157 

her heart to God in prayer, while her daugh- 
ter goes, and carries her dear boy, and leaves 
him on the bank of the river. What will 
become of him ? Will the crocodiles eat him 
up ? or will the waters carry him off and 
drown him? No, no. That poor mother 
has faith in God ; and God will take care of 
her son. The king's daughter will find him, 
and save him ; and that little infant is to be 
Moses, the leader of Israel, the prophet of 
God, and the writer of much of the Bible ! 
This was true faith in God. 



BREAD CAST UPON THE WATERS. 

The Rev. Mr. Young, a Wesleyan minister, 
made the following interesting statement, at 
the late anniversary of the London Sunday 
School Union. How full of encouragement 
to Sabbath School teachers ! 

Teachers who are intent on doing good 
ought not to be discouraged, if they do not 
see the immediate fruit of their labours. 
They are sowing the seed ; and, though that 
seed may continue under the clod for some 
time, by and by the blade will appear, and 
the harvest in due time will be reaped. It is 
casting bread upon the waters, which may 
be found after many days. When I was in 
the West Indies, I heard of a poor soldier 
14 



158 THE PROVIDENCE OP 

condemned to die, and I wished to see him 
in his cell. The jailor allowed me to do so, 
on condition that I should be enclosed in the 
dungeon during the interval of meals, for 
some hours. That, in a West India dungeon, 
was not a very agreeable thing. However, 
I submitted to the condition, and was shut 
up with the prisoner. I found him an inte- 
resting young man ; and, to my surprise, his 
countenance indicated pleasure rather than 
grief, when I presented myself before him. I 
began to inquire relative to the state of his 
mind ; and, to my astonishment, he told me 
he had obtained salvation through the Lord 
Jesus Christ. He went on to detail, in a 
most interesting manner, how he had found 
his way to the Redeemer. Knowing that no 
pious person had previously visited him, I 
wished to be informed how he obtained his 
light ; when he gave the following narra- 
tive : — " Oh ! sir/' he said, " I was a scholar 
in a Sabbath-school at Nottingham. I was 
a very bad boy. I was expelled from the 
school twice, in consequence of my conduct. 
I cherished evil principles in my heart, be- 
cause I was an exceedingly dissipated young 
man. In a fit of intoxication I enlisted as a 
soldier, and, in a few days, left my native 
town. Soon afterwards I was sent out to 
this country ; and I fear my conduct has bro- 
ken the heart of my widowed mother. After 
I had been in this country some time, I did 
not like the army, and deserted. I was ap- 
prehended, and flogged. I deserted again. I 



GOD DISPLAYED. 159 

was betrayed by a companion, apprehended, 
and am now sentenced to die. When I came 
to this loathsome place, I was as dark and 
as ignorant of God as it was possible for any 
sinner to be. I meditated vengeance against 
the person who had informed of me, and 
against my judges; and I thought that I 
would be amply revenged, if I could but 
escape from my place of imprisonment ; but, 
when left alone to my own reflections, I 
thought of the Sabbath-school at Notting- 
ham, and all at once the instruction which I 
received there flashed upon my mind. I 
wept — I prayed — my heart was broken ; and 
I found my way to that Saviour who had so 
often been named in the school to which I 
refer ; and, blessed be God," said he, " he 
has manifested his love to my heart, and 
saved me from the fear of death." The time 
came when he was to be led forth to be shot. 
When he arrived at the place of his execu- 
tion, his conversation, and the whole of his 
proceedings, indicated the tranquillity of his 
mind. He then knelt upon his coffin, prayed 
for himself, for his regiment, for his mother, 
if still alive, and expressed himself in terms 
of confidence and hope. The commanding 
officer appeared deeply affected, and evidently 
felt much reluctance in performing his painful 
duty. At length, however, in a tremulous 
voice, he gave the word — and, in a moment, 
that interesting soldier lay a bleeding and a 
lifeless corpse. Here was bread found after 
many days. That Sunday-school teacher at 



160 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

Nottingham had no idea that he had done 
any good to this young man. When he left 
the school, he had no hope concerning him ; 
and yet the seed, which had been scattered 
in Nottingham, produced glorious fruit in a 
West India dungeon. 



HENRY JUNG STILLING. 

Henry Jung Stilling was an eminent phy- 
sician in the service of the Grand Duke of 
Baden. He died in the year 1821. Stilling 
was an intimate friend of the German poet 
Goethe, who will not be accused of credulity 
or superstition, and it was on Goethe's sug- 
gestion that he published the account of his 
own life, from which the following incidents 
are taken. He had a sound understanding 
— and an enthusiasm for all that is good, 
right and true. The element of his energy 
was an impregnable faith in God. Though 
he led a frugal life, yet it was without care 
and with the greatest cheerfulness ; and he 
applied himself most diligently to his studies, 
although he could not reckon on any certain 
subsistence from one quarter of a year to 
another. 

In youth, Stilling was extremely poor, des- 
titute of the common comforts and necessa- 
ries of life. After a long season of anxiety 



GOD DISPLAYED. 161 

and prayer, he felt satisfied that it was the 
will of God, that he should go to a univer- 
sity and prepare himself for the medical pro- 
fession. He did not, at first, make choice of 
a university, but waited for an intimation 
from his heavenly Father ; for as he intended 
to study simply from faith, he would not fol- 
low his own will in any thing. Three weeks 
after he had come to this determination, a 
friend asked him whither he intended to go. 
He replied he did not know. " Oh," said 
she, "our neighbour is going to Strasburg to 
spend the winter there ; go with him." This 
touched Stilling's heart ; he felt that this was 
the intimation he had waited for. Mean- 
while Mr. T. himself entered the room, and 
was heartily pleased with the proposition. 

The whole of his welfare now depended 
on his becoming a physician, and for this, a 
thousand dollars at least were requisite, of 
which he could not tell in the whole world 
where to raise a hundred. He nevertheless 
fixed his confidence firmly on God, and rea- 
soned as follows : " God begins nothing with- 
out terminating it gloriously ; now it is most 
certainly true, that he alone has ordered my 
present circumstances, entirely without my 
co-operation. Consequently it is also most 
certainly true, that he will accomplish every 
thing regarding me in a manner worthy of 
himself." He smilingly said to his friends, 
who were as poor as himself — " I wonder 
from what quarter my heavenly Father will 
provide me with money." When they ex- 
14* 



162 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

pressed anxiety, he said, " Believe assuredly 
that He who was able to feed a thousand 
people with a little bread lives still, and to 
him I commit myself. He will certainly find 
out means. Do not be anxious; the Lord 
will provide." 

Forty-six dollars was all that he could 
raise for his journey. He met unavoidable 
delay on the way, and while in Frankfort, 
three days ride from Strasburg, he had but a 
single dollar left. He said nothing about it 
to any one, but waited for the assistance of 
his heavenly Father. As he was walking 
the street, and praying inwardly he met Mr. 
L., a merchant from the place of his resi- 
dence, who says to him : " Stilling, what 
brought you here ?" " I am going to Stras- 
burg to study medicine." " Where do you get 
your money to study with ?" " I have a rich 
Father in heaven." Mr. L., looked steadily 
at him and inquired, " how much money 
have you got on hand ?" " One dollar," said 
Stilling. " So," says Mr. L., " Well, I 'm one 
of your Father's stewards," and handed him 
thirty-three dollars. Stilling felt warm tears 
in his eyes. Says he, " I am now rich enough, 
I want no more." This first trial made him 
so courageous, that he no longer doubted that 
God would help him through every thing. 

He had been but a short time in Strasburg, 
when his thirty-three dollars had again been 
reduced to one, on which account he began 
again to pray very earnestly. Just at this 
time one morning, his room mate, Mr. T , 



GOD DISPLAYED. 163 

says to him, " Stilling, I believe you did not 
bring much money with you," and offered 
him thirty dollars in gold, which he gladly 
accepted as in answer to his prayers. In a 
few months the time arrived when he must 
pay the lecturer's fee, or have his name 
struck from the list of students. The money 
was to be paid by six o'clock, Thursday 
evening. Thursday morning came, and he 
had no money, and no means of getting any. 
The day was spent in prayer. Five o'clock 
in the evening came, and yet there was no 
money. His faith began to fail ; he broke 
out into a perspiration; his face was wet 
with tears. Some one knocked at the door — 

" Come in," said he. It was Mr. R , the 

gentleman of whom he had rented the room. 
" I called," said he, "to see how you liked 
your room." " Thank you," said Stilling, 

" I like it very much." Says Mr. R , " 1 

thought I would ask you one other question ; 
have you brought any money with you?" 
He answered, "No, I have no money." Mr. 

R looked at him with surprise, and at 

length said, " I see how it is ; God has sent 
me to help you." He immediately left the 
room, and soon returned with $40 in gold. 

Stilling threw himself on the floor and 
thanked God with tears. He then went to 
the college and paid his fee. 

His whole college life was one series of 
just such circumstances. He was often in 
want of money, but he never asked man for 
it ; for he had no man to ask. He asked God 



164 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

for it, and it always came when he needed 
it. Was he authorized to enter on a course 
of study with such prospects and such ex- 
pectations ? The leadings of Providence 
were such, that he had not a shadow of 
doubt it was his duty to enter on this course 
of study. He prayed fervently for divine 
guidance, and felt that he had it ; he availed 
himself of all the lawful means in his power 
for the supply of his own wants, and when 
he had no means of his own, he asked help 
of God, and never failed to receive what he 
asked for. He became one of the most use- 
ful physicians, and one of the greatest bene- 
factors to the poor that the world has ever 
seen. He restored sight, during his life, 
to nearly five thousand blind people, most 
of whom were very poor and unable to 
render him any pecuniary reward. What 
stronger proofs can we have that God was 
his guide ? 



SPECIAL PROVIDENCE. 

In the spring of the year 1776, Stilling was 
under the necessity of removing to another 
habitation, because his landlord wished to 
occupy his house himself. Mr. Troost there- 
fore sought and found one for him. It lay 
at the lower end of the town, on the way to 



GOD DISPLAYED. 165 

Russelstein, near a number of gardens. It 
was enchantingly beautiful and convenient. 
Stilling rented it, and made preparations for 
removing into it. But here he had a dread- 
ful trial to sustain ; he had hitherto been 
able to pay the seventy dollars house-rent 
regularly every year ; but he had not at that 
time a single farthing in hand, and according 
to the law, he was not permitted to remove 
until the rent was duly paid. The want of 
credit and money likewise rendered him 
timid in requesting his landlord to have a 
little patience ; there was, however, no other 
remedy. Oppressed with extreme sorrow, 
he therefore went to him, and besought his 
landlord, who was a worthy and upright 
merchant, but punctual and severe, to allow 
him a little more time. The merchant re- 
flected a little and then said, « Remove if 
you choose ; but with the condition that you 
pay it in a fortnight." Stilling firmly con- 
fiding in the Divine aid, promised to settle 
every thing by that time, and removed into 
his new habitation. The cheerfulness of the 
house, the prospect of the beauties of nature, 
the convenient accommodation, and in short, 
every circumstance, certainly contributed 
much to alleviate his painful feeling ; but 
the difficulty was not removed, and the 
gnawing worm remained. 

The end of the fourteen days drew near, 
and there was not the slightest appearance 
of obtaining the seventy dollars. The iron 
now again entered into poor Stilling's soul. 



166 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

He often ran up to his chamber, fell upon 
his face, wept, and entreated help of God ; 
and when his vocation called him away, 
Christina took his place. She wept aloud, 
and prayed with such fervour of spirit as 
might have moved a stone ; but there was 
no trace of obtaining so much money. At 
length the dreadful Friday arrived. Both 
prayed incessantly the whole morning, dur- 
ing their occupations, and their heart-rending 
anxiety caused ardent ejaculations to ascend 
continually. 

At ten o'clock, the postman entered the 
door. In one hand he held his receipt book, 
and in the other a letter, the contents of 
which were heavy. Stilling took it full of 
expectation. The superscription was in 
Goethe's hand, and under the address was 
written, " Enclosing one hundred and fifteen 
rix dollars in gold." He broke open the 
letter with astonishment, read it, and found 
that his friend Goethe, without his know- 
ledge, had caused the commencement of his 
history to be published under the title of 
" Stilling's Youth," and this was the sum 
obtained for the copyright. 

Stilling quickly signed the receipt in order 
to send the postman away. He and his wife 
then fell upon each other's necks, wept 
aloud, and praised God for his signal inter- 
position. During Stilling's last journey to 
Frankfort, Goethe had received his call to 
Weimar, and had there procured the publi- 
cation of Stilling's history. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 167 

It cannot be expressed what a powerful 
effect this visible interference of Divine prov- 
idence produced on the hearts of Stilling and 
his consort. They firmly and unhesitatingly 
resolved never to waver any more, but to 
endure every suffering with patience. They 
also perceived in the light of truth, that the 
Father of men led them by the hand ; that 
therefore their path and course were right 
before God, and that he intended by such 
trials to prepare them for higher purposes. 
Oh, how feeble and disgusting to one who 
has had so much experience of this kind is 
the sophistry of modern philosophers when 
they assert, "That God does not trouble 
himself with the detail ; but merely with the 
total; that He has fixed the plan of the 
world, and therefore prayer cannot alter it" 
Jesus Christ is the Governor of the world ; 
Stilling called upon Him a hundred times, 
and he was heard by Him. 



A REMARKABLE INTERPOSITION. 

It has been often observed, that the Chris- 
tian's greatest extremity is the time of God's 
gracious opportunity. Few things are more 
evident, than that some of the darkest dis- 
pensations, in the experience of the saints, 
have been opportunities for the divine care 



168 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

and kindness to be made known and mani- 
fested towards them, and those temporal sup- 
plies that are given in an extraordinary way, 
such as the ravens feeding Elijah, in a par- 
ticular manner answer the designs of our 
Lord. They are the fruit of the wisdom of 
him who hath said, " I will never leave thee ; 
I will never forsake thee." 

Thomas Hownham, the subject of the fol- 
lowing providence, was a very poor man, 
who lived in a lone house or hut upon a 
moor, called Barmour-moor, about a mile 
from Lowick,and two miles from Doddington, 
in Northumberland, England. He had no 
means to support a wife and two young chil- 
dren, save the scanty earnings obtained by 
keeping an ass, on which he used to carry 
coals from Barmour-coalhill to Doddington 
and Wooler ; or by making brooms of the 
heath, and selling them around the country. 
Yet poor and despised as he was in conse- 
quence of his poverty, in my forty years' 
acquaintance in the professing world, I have 
scarce met with his equal, as a man that 
lived near to God, or one who was favoured 
with more evident answers to prayer. My 
parents then living at a village called Hang- 
ing-Hall, about one mile and a half from his 
hut, I had frequent interviews with him, in 
one of which he was very solicitous to know 
whether my father or mother had sent him 
any unexpected relief the night before. I 
answered him in the negative so far as I 
knew ; at which he seemed to be uneasy. I 



GOD DISPLAYED. 169 

then pressed to know what relief he had 
found ; and how. After requesting secresy, 
unless I should hear of it from any other 
quarter (and if so, he begged I would acquaint 
him ;) he proceeded to inform me, that being 
disappointed of receiving money for his coals 
the day before, he returned home in the 
evening, and to his pain and distress found 
that there was neither bread, nor meal, nor 
any thing to supply their place, in his house ; 
that his wife wept sore for the poor children, 
who were both crying for hunger ; that they 
continued crying until they both fell to sleep ; 
that he got them to bed, and their mother 
with them, who likewise soon went to sleep, 
being worn out with the sufferings of the 
children and her own tender feelings. 

Being a fine moonlight night, he went out 
of the house, to a retired spot, at a little dis- 
tance, to meditate on those remarkable ex- 
pressions in Hab. hi. 17 — 19. Here he con- 
tinued, as he thought, about an hour and a 
half; found great liberty and enlargement in 
prayer ; and got such a heart-loathing and 
soul-humbling sight of himself, and such in- 
teresting views of the grace of God, and the 
love of his adorable Saviour, that though he 
went out on purpose to spread his family and 
temporal wants before his Lord, yet having 
obtained a heart-attracting and soul-captivat- 
ing view of him by faith, he was so en- 
amoured with his beauty, and so anxious to 
have his heart entirely under his forming 
15 



170 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

hand, that all thought about temporals was 
taken away. 

In a sweet, serene, and composed frame of 
mind, he returned into his house ; when, by 
the light of the moon through the window, he 
perceived something upon a stool or form (for 
chairs they had none) before the bed; and 
after viewing it with astonishment, and feel- 
ing it, he found it to be a joint of meat 
roasted, and a loaf of bread about the size 
of our half-peck loaves. He then went to 
the door to look if he could see any body ; 
and after using his voice, as well as his eyes, 
and neither perceiving nor hearing any one, 
he returned in, awoke his wife, who was still 
asleep, asked a blessing, and then awoke the 
children, and gave them a comfortable re- 
past; but could give me no further account. 
I related this extraordinary affair to my father 
and mother, who both heard it with aston- 
ishment ; but ordered me to keep it a secret 
as requested; and such it would ever have 
remained, but for the following reason : — A 
short time after this event I left that country ; 
but on a visit, about twelve years after, at a 
friend's, the conversation one evening took a 
turn about one Mr. Strangeways, commonly 
called Stranguage, a farmer, who lived at 
Lowick-Highsteed, which the people named 
Pinch-me-near, on account of this miserly 
wretch that dwelt there. I asked what had 
become of his property, as I apprehended he 
had never done one generous action in his 
life-time. An elderly woman in company 



GOD DISPLAYED. 171 

said, I was mistaken; for she could relate 
one, which was somewhat curious. She 
said, that she had lived with him as a servant 
or housekeeper ; that about twelve or thir- 
teen years ago, one Thursday morning, he 
ordered her to have a whole joint of meat 
roasted, having given her directions a day or 
two before to bake two large loaves of white 
bread. He then went to Wooler market, and 
took a piece of bread and cheese in his pocket, 
as usual. He came home in the evening in a 
very bad humour, and went soon to bed. In 
about two hours after, he called up his man 
servant, and ordered him to take one of the 
loaves and the joint of meat, and carry them 
down the moor to Thomas Hownham's, and 
leave them there. The man did so, and find- 
ing the family asleep, he set them at their 
bedside, and came away. 

The next morning her master called her 
and the man servant in, and seemed in great 
agitation of mind. He told them that he in- 
tended to have invited a Mr. John Mool, 
with two or three more neighbouring far- 
mers, (who were always teasing him for his 
meanness,) to sup with him the night before : 
that he would not invite them in the market- 
place, as he purposed to have taken them by 
surprise near home, as two or three of them 
passed his house, but a smart shower of rain 
coming on, they rode off, and left him before 
he could get an opportunity ; that going soon 
to bed he did not rest well, fell a dreaming, 
and thought he saw Hownham's wife and 



172 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

children starving for hunger ; that he awoke 
and put off the impression ; that he dreamed 
the second time, and endeavoured again to 
shake it off, but that he was altogether over- 
come with the nonsense a third time ; that be 
believed the devil was in him, but that since 
he was so foolish as to send the meat and 
bread, he could not now help it, and charged 
her and the man never to speak of it, or he 
would turn them away directly. She added, 
that since he was dead long ago, she thought 
she might relate it, as a proof that he had 
done one generous action, though he was 
grieved for it afterwards. 

This is the fact ; let those that read make 
their own reflections. 



A SINGULAR DREAM. 

A minister, for some time after his en- 
trance upon the sacred ministry, was fre- 
quently harassed with fears that he should 
not be able to proceed in the work. Often, 
on a Lord's day evening, he would think 
within himself, " Now, I am quite exhausted. 
I have said all I can say. How shall I ever 
be able to compose another sermon ? Is it 
possible for me to go on in the ministry, 
where people are expecting things new as 
well as old, from time to time ?" It always 



GOD DISPLAYED. 173 

happened to him better than his fears ; for 
by the ' next time of preaching, something 
occurred to his mind whereon to preach, 
which proved of benefit to some, But there 
was one week in particular, through the 
whole of which he could not bring his mind 
to fix, for any time, upon any subject. He 
turned over his Bible and Concordance from 
day to day, and supplicated the throne of 
grace. At times he seemed to have an in- 
sight into a passage of Scripture, but could 
not long pursue any meditation before he 
found himself almost obliged to give it up, 
through embarrassment and perplexity. In 
this unhappy state he continued till very 
late on the Saturday night, when he retired 
to his bed, almost in despair of being able to 
appear in the pulpit on the following day ; nor 
did he expect to sleep, the anxiety he felt 
was so great ; but, contrary to his expecta- 
tions, he soon went to rest ; and before he 
waked, he dreamed that he went to a parish 
church, where, in former days, he had stat- 
edly attended, and that with unspeakable plea- 
sure, upon the ministry of the Rev. Mr. Venn 
After the prayers were over, with tears of joy 
he beheld his dear minister ascend the pulpit, 
who after a short but comprehensive and ani- 
mated extemporary prayer, took for his text 
Matt. viii. 2. " Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst 
make me clean." After a very striking intro- 
duction, in which he exhibited the sense of 
the passage in the clearest point of view, he 
took occasion from thence, and that in a man- 
15* 



174 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

ner almost peculiar to himself, to point out 
the uncleanness, pollution, and impurities of 
fallen man, together with the ability and 
willingness of the Lord Jesus Christ to make 
him clean ; and also the poor sinner's earnest 
solicitude for the benefit, when once he be- 
comes sensible of his absolute need thereof. 
At the conclusion of the service, the minister 
awaked from his sleep, surprised to find him- 
self in bed, but very much refreshed by his 
sleep, and still more by his dream. He could 
not doubt of invisible agency over the human 
mind, both by night and day, when men 
awake, and when they sleep. He thought 
he retained in his mind all that in his sleep 
he had heard ; and found himself happy in 
being thus provided with what he so very 
much wanted — a subject whereon to dis- 
course that day to his people. It served him 
for the whole day, which was a comfortable 
one to himself, and a time of refreshing to 
many of his flock. 



A REMARKABLE PROVIDENCE. 

A singular and remarkable providence hap- 
pened at the house of Mr. John Goss, in 
Lemon Lane, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, 
in the night between the 2d and 3d days 
of April, 1794. Mr. Goss and his family, 



GOD DISPLAYED. 175 

which consisted of ten persons, having com- 
mitted themselves to the divine protection, 
went to bed, and fell into a sound sleep. 
Between twelve and one o'clock he awoke, 
and was remarkably comfortable in his mind, 
at the thought of awaking in life, and health, 
and safety, and surrounded with so many tem- 
poral blessings as himself and family then 
enjoyed. His mind was greatly elevated with 
meditations on spiritual and divine things, and 
firmly staid upon his God and Saviour. All 
within was serene and quiet. 

After a few minutes had elapsed, he 
thought something made a noise, like the fall- 
ing of sand upon the tester of the bed, which 
was probably some of the plastering from 
the ceiling of the room. He next heard a 
sudden crash ; on which he instantly arose, 
and called to his wife, who was then fast 
asleep by his side. She immediately arose. 
A daughter, who was about seven years of 
age, and who was also fast asleep in the 
same bed, Mr. Goss took in his arms ; and 
just as they had reached the chamber door, 
he looked back, and, to his very great aston- 
ishment, found the bedstead was gone. It 
had fallen through the floor of the room 
down to the ground, a distance of between 
five and six yards ; and was turned upside 
down, and almost buried in the ruins of that 
part of the house which fell. This happened 
in less time than a minute from their quitting 
the bed. In the room above was another 
bed, whereon a serious youth lay, also fast 



176 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

asleep. He being awakened by the noise of 
the family's rising in such a hurry and con- 
fusion, and looking up, beheld the stars shin- 
ing. Upon this he immediately jumped out 
of bed. He had no time to reflect on the 
cause of so strange and sudden a surprise, 
for his bedstead was hanging just upon a 
poise two yards above where the other had 
stood, and was prevented from falling near 
eight yards, only by a basket which had been 
put under the bed, and which kept the bed's 
foot from sliding. It is probable that the bed 
had hung in that dangerous situation for 
some time before the youth awoke. The 
gable end of the house against which the two 
bedsteads had stood, had entirely fallen to 
the ground. The reason of this sudden and 
alarming catastrophe was this : — The owner 
of the house had been sinking the ground at 
a little distance, to lay the foundation for an- 
other which he was erecting, and as it now 
appears, had not left a sufficient space of 
ground to support the foundation of that 
which fell. Besides, on the day preceding 
this calamity, a heavy and almost incessant 
rain had so softened and loosened the ground 
as to hasten the fall. Such an alarming 
occurrence surprised most of the people in 
the town, and constrained them to acknow- 
ledge that this was a very great and singular 
providence. Though several pieces of Mr. 
Goss's furniture were almost buried in the 
ruins, they were dug out without sustaining 
much damage. When he saw that all his 



GOD DISPLAYED. 177 

family were safe (for they all ran down stairs 
in their confusion without dressing them- 
selves,) he said, " that his heart felt such a 
sensation of gratitude and joy, on account of 
this interposition of divine Providence, that 
if all his furniture had been lost, he thought 
he could have borne it with patience and re- 
signation, or if he had received all the riches 
of the world, they could not have given him 
such heartfelt satisfaction." To acknow- 
ledge and adore the divine Providence is 
congenial to the Christian character; and 
especially as all our blessings, temporal and 
spiritual, flow to us in that channel. Our 
safety by day or night depends upon the 
Lord's divine protection, and when any thing 
singular happens, it is our duty with humility 
and gratitude to publish it. 

"Dangers stand thick through all the ground, 
To hurry mortals home." 

We know not what a night, an hour, a 
minute or a moment may bring forth. Death 
stands ready at the door to take away our 
lives. There are many avenues through 
which we may be called from time, with all 
its powerful and attractive connexions, into 
eternity. 

" We should suspect some danger nigh, 
Where we possess delight." 

It has been already remarked that Mr. 
Goss, previously to going to rest, had, accord- 
ing to his usual custom, committed himself 



178 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

and his family to God his Saviour, by prayer 
and supplication, with thanksgiving. He 
asked for protection and safety through the 
ensuing night, and the Lord attended thereto, 
and perhaps this salvation was wrought in 
answer to prayer : 

" Prayer is appointed to convey, 

The blessing's God intends to give ; 

Long as they live should Christians pray, 

For only while they pray they live." 

Whatever those who deny both God and 
his providence may think of such an occur- 
rence as that we have related, let all who 
profess the religion of Jesus, acknowledge, 
admire, and adore the Lord in his wise, mer- 
ciful and providential displays towards them. 
" For it is not in man that walketh to direct 
his steps, and a good man's ways are ordered 
by the Lord." A sparrow cannot fall to the 
ground without the divine notice and permis- 
sion : and the hairs of the heads of God's 
people are all numbered. The Lord says, 
they "shall never perish, neither shall any 
pluck them out of his hands." How our 
Lord will dispose of our lives, liberties, 
labours and properties, for the time to come, 
we know not ; let us then cheerfully commit 
all we have and are to Him, who hath 
hitherto performed all things well for us. 
And may this, through divine grace, be the 
determination of our hearts, that we and our 
houses will serve the Lord, in offering up 
our morning and evening sacrifices, until 



GOD DISPLAYED. 179 

prayer shall be turned into eternal praise, 
and the days of our danger and mourning 
shall be for ever ended. 



SPECIAL PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 

The following account was extracted from a 
German Magazine, in which it had been in- 
serted by a gentleman, whose brother, a wor- 
thy minister of Christ, gave it to me, trans- 
lated by himself. My friend also attested 
that he knew Mr. Bakker personally, and had 
heard the same story from his own mouth. 

Bristol. J. R. 

Dear Friend, — You, no doubt, recollect 
our last agreeable conversation with our 
friend B., concerning the special providence 
of God over individuals, and more particu- 
larly over his children. The wish our friend 
then expressed, that a collection might be 
made of the most remarkable instances of 
God's paternal care of, and attention to, those 
who are his own, supported by historic proofs 
on which we might depend, belongs by no 
means to the number of vain and idle wishes, 
but is well worthy of being carried into effect. 

In the mean time I will relate a particular 
instance of the evident interposition of Divine 
Providence, which may serve as a very proper 



180 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

specimen of such a collection. I can war- 
rant the truth of the fact, and am personally 
acquainted with the man it chiefly concerns, 
from whose own mouth I received the rela- 
tion ; and whom I know to be an upright 
person, and I am persuaded a genuine Chris- 
tian. 

John Bakker, the subject of this narrative, 
travelled in the year 1762, (the very first 
time in his life he had taken a long journey,) 
quite alone, from Zeyst, near Utrecht, to 
New Wied upon the Rhine, and was now 
upon his way from Cleves to Cologne. He 
had with him, (besides many letters,) a con- 
siderable sum of money in gold, and some 
watches and jewels. His road led him 
through a wood, about four English miles in 
length, which at that time was infested by 
French marauders, who, the very day before, 
had murdered a travelling tailor, of which, 
however, he had not heard any thing. Hav- 
ing proceeded in this wood for about half an 
hour, in unusual anxiety, of which he had at 
last rid himself, by engaging his mind in 
meditation on a text of holy writ, he per- 
ceived a man behind him, who asked him, 
What o'clock it was ? While he gave him 
for answer, that it was near eleven (in the 
forenoon,) there stepped forth, from a thicket 
on one side of the Toad, three other men, 
who immediately demanded his money. 

He declared to them, that though he wanted 
it for his journey, yet he was ready to deliver 
it up to them. He actually produced his 



GOD DISPLAYED. 181 

purse, which contained about four rix-dollars 
(worth about thirteen shillings,) and surren- 
dered it into their hands. But now the vil- 
lains, laying hold on him, tore his coat and 
waistcoat with violence from his body, and 
seized upon his small-clothes, in which he had 
his gold concealed, abusing him withal in a 
most cruel manner. He instantly entreated 
them to spare his life, or at least, allow him a 
few minutes to commit his soul into the hands 
of God. But the robbers, who, amidst dreadful 
imprecations and barbarous treatment, were 
tearing off his small-clothes, at last agreed 
with each other to drag him from the road 
into the thick wood. 

You may easily conceive the deadly an- 
guish he endured while in their merciless 
hands. But while the robbers, regardless of 
his groans and entreaties, were engaged in 
dragging him away, there came two men on 
horseback full gallop behind him, along the 
road, whom he could not see, but at the ap- 
pearance of whom the robbers immediately 
threw away his clothes, and escaped with his 
purse only, into the wood. The horsemen ap- 
proaching, found him almost fainting, and tak- 
ing his clothes to them on their horses encour- 
aged him to run as fast as he was able, along 
with them, in order to bring again into cir- 
culation his blood, congealed and stagnated 
through the anguish of death. He did it as 
well as he could, laying hold on the tail of one 
of the horses, and was conducted by his deliv- 
erers into the next village adjoining the wood, 
16 



182 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

where they took him to the bailiff of that 
district. This gentleman, immediately on 
seeing him, and having received from the 
men a brief information of what had hap- 
pened to him, cried out, with great emotion 
of mind, " My friend ! you must needs be a 
Christian indeed, and God must have a spe- 
cial regard for you." He then related to him 
how he, going that morning into his garden 
to weed, on a sudden felt an impulse to dis- 
patch his men into the wood, in order to try 
whether any trace of the robbers who had 
murdered the tailor the day before, could be 
discovered: and that thinking it might, as 
well be put off for the afternoon, he had 
suffered such anxiety and perturbation of his 
mind as rendered his eyes so dim that he 
could not see a single plant in his garden. 
On which account he, straight returning into 
his house, in all haste despatched the two 
men on horseback into the wood ; and there- 
upon immediately recovered his peace of 
mind. 

You may, my dear friend, easily conceive 
the sensations of the heart of our traveller, 
who had been so mercifully delivered, at this 
relation of the bailiff; who, in addition to his 
having proved the means of saving his life, 
took the most kind and liberal care of him, 
and lodged him that day and the ensuing 
night, at his own house. Directly after this, 
measures were taken to search after the rob- 
bers, and divine justice caused them to be 



GOD DISPLAYED. 183 

discovered and apprehended, when they re- 
ceived their deserved punishment. 

Methinks this event is a most affecting in- 
stance of the Lord's looking down upon his 
own, in mercy and favour, and of his know- 
ing how to deliver and preserve them in a 
most wonderful manner. ! that we might 
ever trust in him, resigning ourselves and all 
our concerns, with filial confidence and faith, 
unto his holy will and providential care ! 



THE POWER OF CONSCIENCE. 

Conscience is that power of our minds which 
compares our actions with the law of God, 
approving that which is good, and condemn- 
ing that which is evil. Too often it is dor- 
mant, unfaithful or defiled, and sometimes 
callous, " seared, as it were, with a hot iron." 
Ignorance of the spirituality of God's law, 
hardness of heart, and habits of sin, together 
with wrong notions of the way of reconcilia- 
tion to God, keep the soul in a false peace. 
Nevertheless, when persons commit atrocious 
actions, criminal even in the eyes of natural 
men, and destructive of the bonds by which 
human society is held together, it is often 
found impossible to silence the clamours of 
an accusing conscience ; and death itself, in 
its most dreadful forms, is preferred to the in- 



184 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

tolerable gnawings of this agonizing worm. 
Permit me to illustrate this sad truth, by the 
following anecdote, with which, probably, 
few of your readers are acquainted. 

" A jeweller, a man of good character and 
considerable wealth, having occasion, in the 
way of his business, to travel at some distance 
from the place of his abode, took along with 
him a servant, in order to take care of his port- 
manteau. He had with him some of his best 
jewels, and a large sum of money, to which 
his servant was likewise privy. The mas- 
ter having occasion to dismount on the road, 
the servant, watching his opportunity, took a 
pistol from his master's saddle, and shot him 
dead on the spot ; then rifled him of his 
jewels and money, and hanging a large stone 
to his neck, he threw him into the nearest 
canal. With his booty he made off to a dis- 
tant part of the country, where he had rea- 
son to believe that neither he nor his master 
was known. There he began to trade in a 
very low way at first, that his obscurity might 
screen him from observation ; and in the 
course of a good many years, seemed to rise, 
by the natural progress of his business, into 
wealth and consideration ; so that his good 
fortune appeared at once the effect and re- 
ward of industry and virtue. Of these he 
counterfeited the appearance so well, that he 
grew into great credit, married into a good 
family, and by laying out his hidden stores 
discreetly, as he saw occasion, and joining to 
all an universal affability, he was admitted 



GOD DISPLAYED. 185 

to a share of the government of the town, 
and lose from one post to another, till at 
length he was chosen chief magistrate. In 
this office he maintained a fair character, and 
continued to fill it with no small applause, 
both as governor and as judge ; till one day, 
as he sat on the bench with some of his breth- 
ren, a criminal was brought before him who 
was accused of murdering his master. The 
evidence came out full, the jury brought in 
their verdict that the prisoner was guilty, and 
the whole assembly waited, with great sus- 
pense, the sentence of the president of the 
court, which he happened to be on that day. 
Meanwhile he appeared to be in unusual dis- 
order and agitation of mind, and his colour 
changed often ; at length he arose from his 
seat, and coming down from the bench, 
placed himself just by the unfortunate man 
at the bar. " You see before you," said he, 
addressing himself to those who had sat on 
the bench with him, " A striking instance of 
the just rewards of heaven, which this day, 
after thirty years' concealment, presents to 
you a greater criminal than the man just 
now found guilty." Then he made an ample 
confession of his guilt, and of all its aggra- 
vations. " Nor can I feel," continued he, 
" any relief from the agonies of an awakened 
conscience, but by requiring that justice be 
forthwith done against me, in the most public 
and solemn manner." We may easily sup- 
pose the amazement of all the assembly, and 
especially of his fellow-judges. However, 
16* 



1S6 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

they proceeded, upon his confession, to pass 
sentence upon him, and he died with all the 
symptoms of a penitent mind. 

Dear reader, let this remarkable display of 
the power of conscience, remind you of what 
will happen in the great day. In the process 
of eternal judgment, the books will be opened. 
Probably, the book of God's holy law — the 
book of God's remembrance, and the book 
of conscience ; — this will prove an exact 
counterpart of the former. The writing in 
this book is faint, seldom reviewed, and 
scarcely legible ; like that, says one, which is 
written with the juice of lemons, not to be 
read till brought to the fire. That fire, which 
shall try every man's work, will render this 
writing legible to all the world, and the ope- 
ration of conscience, in every unpardoned 
sinner, shall be as mighty as in the instance 
just related. 

Happy believer, who, convinced of sin, 
and self-condemned, hast already known the 
power of conscience, hast had the most lively 
feeling of sin and its fatal desert ; who, in 
consequence of this, hast fled to the cross for 
refuge ; whose " heart is sprinkled from an 
evil conscience " by the blood of Christ ; and 
who can listen to "the answer of a good 
conscience by the resurrection of Jesus from 
the dead." 

Resolve, by divine grace, with Job, that 
thine heart shall not reproach thee with 
allowed sin, as long as thou livest ; and 



GOD DISPLAYED. 187 

labour, with Paul, to maintain always a con- 
science void of offence towards God and 



POISONING PREVENTED. 

Some years ago, having observed the drawer 
in which I keep my cash to be unlocked, 
or the bolt shot, and having no suspicion 
in the least of any of my family, I was 
willing to believe it must be owing to my 
not locking it up. But after repeatedly 
finding it so, and some loss of cash, it was 
strongly impressed on my mind, that it must 
be my maid servant who opened it ; yet 
no plain proof appeared that she was the 
person, till a few days before the diaboli- 
cal plot was discovered. The day before, I 
took an opportunity to charge her privately 
with the rime, not without great hope she 
would confess it. I told her the consequence 
if it was proved on her, and offered forgive- 
ness if she would confess it. I also pointed 
out to her the dreadful condition of a future 
state if she lived in the practice of such sins ; 
but all was in vain. I at last said to her, 
Maria, you may depend upon it, if it is 
proved to be you, I shall show you no mercy, 
and be sure your sin ivill find you out. 
After having said so much, and she per- 



188 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

sisted in denying it, I reflected on myself, that 
I had said any thing to her. This was much 
on my mind all the evening, and first the 
next morning, which caused me to be ear- 
nest at the throne of grace, that, if I had 
accused her wrongfully, the harsh words 
above, "I will show you no mercy,'' might 
be forgiven me; but that if she was guilty, 
she might confess. After returning thanks 
for the favours of the past night, I recom- 
mended myself and family to the Divine pro- 
tection. 

This morning, as usual, 1 went into the 
fields, and after returning home, breakfast 
not being ready, I took a book to read, and 
as it is my custom when reading, not to stop 
to ask a blessing until I get to a period, so it 
was this morning. Perhaps the breakfast 
might wait two minutes, which led to the 
discovery of the plot. My sister, waiting for 
me, stirred her tea, and in a surprise said, 
" My tea is just like poison, it has changed my 
spoon just like copper." At this I instantly 
stopped, and stirred up mine, and found it to 
be the same. 

It struck us both that something must be 
put in the water, tea, or sugar, which we 
found to be in the latter, and which plainly 
appeared to be mercury, broken- small, and 
mixed with it. For the proof of this, I picked 
out some of the largest pieces, and put them 
into a cup. I broke about the same quantity 
of mercury, and put it into another cup, then 
put a spoon in each, and filled them both 



GOD DISPLAYED. 189 

with boiling water, which changed the spoons 
to the copper colour before mentioned. For 
further proof, I picked from the sugar some 
more pieces and gave them to a hen, which 
soon put an end to her life. — The sugar 
with the mercury in it I have now by 
me ; which I keep as a token of the Lord's 
mercy. Reader, may this providence remind 
us of the wickedness of the human heart 
when left to itself, and make us watchful 
over lesser sins, which, if given way to, lead 
to greater ; as an old divine remarks, " If the 
serpent wind in his head, he will draw in his 
whole body after." May it also encourage 
us to put our trust in that God who hears 
and answers prayer ! J. F. 

May, 179S. 



" A GOOD BOOK IS NEVER LOST." 

The truth of this common adage has been 
often exemplified, but seldom in a more ex- 
traordinary way than by the following fact, 
communicated to us by the Rev. S. Douglass, 
of Chelmsford. There lived in the town of 

C , a person of the name of Johnson, by 

profession a painter, and much esteemed in 
that line of business. — Notwithstanding he 
had been privileged with a religious educa- 
tion, his connexions in the world led him into 



190 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

the company of some persons of a cleistical 
turn, by whom his mind was much injured, 
though he was not without occasional checks 
of conscience, and slavish fears of death. 
From this miserable state it pleased the God 
of all grace to deliver him, in the year 1796. 
in the following singular manner : — His wife, 
in passing along the streets, picked up, and 
brought home, three or four books, which 
had been lost by, one of the members of a 
book-society in the town. Among them was 
'• Four Missionary Sermons," with the por- 
trait of Captain Wilson. Being a painter by 
profession, the picture first engaged his atten- 
tion, and after dipping a little into the book, 
he resolved, as illness confined him at home 
the following Sabbath, that he would read 
over the four sermons. The blessed conse- 
quence was, that the Holy Spirit set home 
the truths contained in them on his heart, 
and from that day he was a new man. For 
some time he attended the ministry of Mr. 
D. with much profit, and at length died full 
of faith, and of the Holy Ghost. Thus we 
see that circumstances, very trivial in them- 
selves, may, by the application of the divine 
Spirit, be made effectual to the conversion of 
sinners; and even the loss of a book may 
prove, through his blessing, the finding of a 
soul. 

The circumstance above related, suggested 
a hint to our minds, which we beg leave to 
propose to the serious reader. May we not 
hope that much good might be done, if those 



GOD DISPLAYED. 191 

to whom the Lord hath given ability, were 
to purchase small tracts, upon spiritual sub- 
jects, and, by dropping them as they walk, 
slipping them iuto the pocket of a stage 
coach, or leaving them at an inn on the road, 
as they travel, induce some, from motives of 
mere curiosity, to look into these kind of 
books, which, otherwise, they would dis- 
regard. 



PROVIDENTIAL SICKNESS. 

The Rev. Dr. R , of Bristol, was lately 

preaching from Ecciesiastes vi. 12. '-'Who 
knoweth what is good for a man r' His text 
led him to discourse upon Providence, in 
which he introduced the following anecdote, 
told him by his father, who knew the circum- 
stance to be true. 

A gentleman in an extensive line of business 
in a distant part of the country, left his house 
with an intention of going to Bristol fair : but 
when he had proceeded about half way on his 
journey was taken with so violent a fit of the 
stone, as to be detained several days at the 
place where he then was ; and as the fair was 
by this time in a considerable degree over, he 
was induced to return home. Some years 
after, the same gentleman happening to be 
on business at some place where the assizes 



192 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

for the county were held, was induced, from 
what motive I know not, to be present at the 
execution of a criminal, who was then about 
to suffer. Whilst he was here mixed with 
the crowd the criminal intimated a desire to 
speak with him, and signified that he had 
something to communicate to him. The gen- 
tleman approached, and was addressed in 
language similar to this , " Do you recollect 
having intended at such a time. to go to 
Bristol fair ?" " Yes, perfectly well." " It is 
well that you did not, for it was the intention 
of myself and several others, who knew 
that you had a considerable sum of money 
about you, to waylay and rob, and (if I mis- 
take not) murder you, to escape detection." 
Thus those afflictions and cross providences 
which in the experience of believers are so 
painful, are sometimes seen in the event to 
have been intended by God for the most 
valuable purposes. 

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, 

But trust him for his grace ; 
Behind a frowning- providence, 

He hides a smiling face. 
Blind Unbelief is sure to err, 

And scan his works in vain ; 
God is his own interpreter, 

And he will make it plain. 
Bristol, Nov. 28, 1799. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 193 



LIFE FROM THE DEAD. 

After a regular course of study in theology, 
Mr. William Tennent was preparing for his 
examination by the Presbytery, as a candi- 
date for the Gospel ministry. His intense 
application affected his health, and brought on 
a pain in his breast, and a slight hectic. He 
soon became emaciated, and at length was like 
a living skeleton. His life was now threatened. 
He was attended by a physician, a young 
man who was attached to him by the strict- 
est and warmest friendship. He grew worse 
and worse, till little hopes of life were left. 
In this situation his spirits failed him, and he 
began to entertain doubts of his final happi- 
ness. He was conversing one morning with 
his brother, in Latin, on the state of his soul, 
when he fainted and died away. After the 
usual time he was laid out on a board, ac- 
cording to the common practice of the coun- 
try, and the neighbourhood were invited to 
attend his funeral on the next day. In the 
evening his physician and friend returned 
from a ride into the country, and was afflicted 
beyond measure at the news of his death. 
He could not be persuaded that it was cer- 
tain ; and, on being told that one of the per- 
sons who had assisted in laying out the body 
thought he had observed a little tremor of 
the flesh under the arm, although the body 
was cold and stiff, he endeavoured to ascer- 
tain the fact. He first put his own hand into 
17 



194 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

warm water, to make it as sensible as possi- 
ble, and then felt under the arm, and at the 
heart, and affirmed that he felt an unusual 
warmth, though no one else could. He 
had the body restored to a warm bed, and 
insisted that the people who had been invited 
to the funeral, should be requested not to 
attend. To this the brother objected as 
absurd, the eyes being sunk, the lips dis- 
coloured, and the whole body cold and stiff. 
However the doctor finally prevailed, and all 
probable means were used to discover symp- 
toms of returning life. But the third day 
arrived, and no hopes were entertained of 
success but by the doctor, who never left him 
night nor day. The people were again in- 
vited, and assembled to attend the funeral. 
The doctor still objected, and at last confined 
his request for delay to one hour, then to 
half an hour, and finally, to a quarter of an 
hour. He had discovered that the tongue 
was much swollen, and threatened to crack. 
He was endeavouring to soften it by some 
emollient ointment put upon it with a feather, 
when the brother came in, about the expira- 
tion of the last period, and mistaking what 
the doctor was doing for an attempt to feed 
him, manifested some resentment, and said, in 
a spirited tone, " It is shameful to be feeding 
a lifeless corpse;" and insisted, with earnest- 
ness, that the funeral should immediately pro- 
ceed. At this critical and important moment, 
Mr. Tennent, to the great alarm and aston- 
ishment of all present, opened his eyes, gave 



GOD DISPLAYED. 195 

a dreadful groan, and sunk again into appa- 
rent death. This put an end to all thoughts 
of burying him, and every effort was again 
employed, in hopes of bringing about a 
speedy resuscitation. In about an hour, the 
eyes again opened, a heavy groan proceeded 
from the body, and again all appearance of 
animation vanished. In another hour, life 
seemed to return with more power, and a 
complete revival took place, to the great joy 
of the family and friends, and to the no small 
astonishment and conviction of the very 
many who had been ridiculing the idea of 
restoring to life a dead bod}^. 



A MINISTER SAVED FROM THE PILLORY. 

There was a noted man, by the name of 
Tom Beilj whose knowledge and understand- 
ing were very considerable, and who greatly 
excelled in low art and cunning. His mind 
was totally debased, and his whole conduct 
betrayed a soul capable of descending to 
every species of iniquity. In all the arts of 
theft, robbery, fraud, deception, and defama- 
tion, he was so deeply skilled, and so tho- 
roughly practised, that it is believed that he 
never had his equal in America. He had 
been indicted in almost every one of the 
middle colonies; but his ingenuity and cun- 



196 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

ning always enabled him to escape punish- 
ment. This man unhappily resembled the 
Rev. David Rowland in his external appear- 
ance, so as hardly to be known from him 
without the most careful examination. 

It so happened, that Tom Bell arrived one 
evening at a tavern in Princeton, dressed in 
a parson's dark grey frock. On his entering 
the tavern about dusk, the late John Stock- 
ton, Esq., of that town, a pious and respect- 
able man, to whom Mr. Rowland was well 
known, went up to Bell, and addressed him 
as Mr. Rowland, and was inviting him to go 
home with him. Bell assured him of his 
mistake. It was with some difficulty that 
Mr. Stockton acknowledged his error, and 
then informed Bell that it had arisen from his 
great resemblance to Mr. Rowland. This 
hint was sufficient for the prolific genius of 
that notorious impostor. The next day Bell 
went into the county of Hunterdon, and 
stopped in a congregation where Mr. Row- 
land had formerly preached once or twice, 
but where he was not intimately known. 
Here he met with a member of the congre- 
gation, to whom he introduced himself as the 
Rev. Mr. Rowland, who had preached to 
them some time before. This gentleman im- 
mediately invited him to his house to spend 
the week ; and begged him, as the people 
were without a minister, to preach for them 
on the next Sabbath, to which Bell agreed, 
and notice was accordingly given in the 
neighbourhood. The impostor was treated 



GOD DISPLAYED. 197 

with every mark of attention and respect; 
and a private room was assigned to him as a 
study, to prepare for the Sabbath. The sacred 
day arrived, and he was invited to ride to 
chnrch with the ladies in the family^wagon, 
and the master of the house accompanied 
them on an elegant horse. When they had 
arrived near the church, Bell, on a sudden, 
discovered that he had left his notes in his 
study, and proposed to ride back for them on 
the fine horse, by which means he should be 
able to return in time for the service. This 
proposal was instantly agreed to, and Bell 
mounted the horse, returned to the house, 
rifled the desk of his host, and made off with 
the horse. Wherever he stopped, he called 
himself the Rev. David Rowland. 

At the time this event took place, Messrs. 
Tennent and Rowland had gone into Penn- 
sylvania or Maryland, with Mr. Joshua An- 
derson and Mr. Benjamin Stevens, (both 
members of a church contiguous to that 
where Bell had practised his fraud,) on busi- 
ness of a religious nature. Soon after their 
return, Mr. Rowland was charged with the 
above robbery. He gave bonds to appear at 
the court of Trenton, and the affair made 
a great noise throughout the colony. At 
the Court of Oyer and Terminer, the judge 
charged the grand jury on the subject with 
great severity. After a long consideration, 
the jury returned into court without finding 
a bill. — The judge reproved them in an 
angry manner, and ordered them out again. 
17* 



19S THE PROVIDENCE OF 

They again returned without finding a bill, 
and were again sent out with threatenings of 
re punishment, if they persisted in their 
refusal. At last they agreed, and brought 
in a bill for the alleged crime. On the trial, 
Messrs. Tennent, Anderson, and Stevens ap- 
jd as witnesses, and fully proved an 
alibi in favour of Mr. Rowland, by swear- 
ing that on the very day on which the rob- 
bery was committed, they were with Mr. 
Rowland, and heard him preach in Pennsyl- 
vania or Maryland. The jury accordingly 
acquitted him without hesitation, to the great 
disappointment and mortification of his prose- 
cutors, and of many other enemies to the 
great revival of religion that had recently 
taken place ; but to the' great joy of the seri- 
ous and well disposed. 

The spirits hostile to the spread of the gos- 
pel were not, however, so easily overcome. 
In their view an opportunity was now pre- 
sented, favourable for inflicting a deep wound 
on the cause of Christianity ; and, as if urged 
on by the malice of man's great enemy, they 
resolved that no means should be left untried, 
no art unemployed, for the destruction of 
those distinguished servants of God Many 
and various were the circumstances which 
still contributed to inspire them with hopes 
of success. The testimony of the person 
who had been robbed, was positive that Mr. 
Rowland was the robber ; and this testimony 
was corroborated by that of a number of in- 
dividuals who had seen Tom Bell personat- 



GOD DISPLAYED. 199 

ing Mr. Rowland, using his name, and in 
possession of the horse. These sons of Belial 
had been able, after great industry used for 
the purpose, to collect a mass of evidence of 
this kind, which they considered as establish- 
ing the fact ; but Mr. Rowland was now out 
of their power by the verdict of not guilty. 
Their vengeance, therefore, was directed 
against the witnesses by whose testimony he 
had been cleared ; and they were accordingly 
arraigned for perjury before the court oi 
quarter sessions in the county ; and the grand 
jury received a strict charge, the plain im- 
port of which was, that these good men ought 
to be indicted. After an examination of the 
testimony on one side only, as is the custom 
in such cases, the grand jury did accordingly 
find bills of indictment against Messrs. Ten- 
nent, Anderson, and Stevens, for wilful and 
corrupt perjury. Their enemies, and the 
enemies of the gospel, now began to triumph. 
They gloried in the belief, that an indelible 
stain would be fixed on the professors of reli- 
gion, and, of consequence, on religion itself; 
and that this new light, by which they de- • 
nominated all appearance of piety, would 
soon be extinguished for ever. 

These indictments were removed to the 
supreme court; and poor Mr. Anderson, liv- 
ing in the county, and conscious of his entire 
innocence, could not brook the idea of lying 
under the odium of the hateful crime of per- 
jury, and demanded a trial at the first court 
of Oyer and Terminer. This proved most 



200 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

seriously injurious to him; for he was pro- 
ceed guilty, and most cruelly and unjustly 
condemned to stand one hour on the court 
house steps, with a paper on his breast, 
written, in large letters. « This 
is for wilful and corrupt perjury," which sen- 
was executed upon him. 
.$. Tennent and Stevens were sum- 
moned to appear at the next court ; and 

:ied accordingly, depending on the aid 
of Mr. John Coxe, an eminent lawyer, who 
had been previously employed to conduct 
their defence. As Mr. Tennent was wholly 
unacquainted with the nature of forensic liti- 
gation, and did not know of any person liv- 
ing who could prove his innocence, (all the 

as who were with him being indicted.) 
Lis only resource and consolation was to 
commit himself to the divine will, and, if he 
must suffer, to take it as if from the hand of 
God, who he well knew, could make even 
the wrath of man to praise him j* and, con- 
sidering it as probable that he might suffer, 
he had prepared a sermon, to be preached 
from the pillory, if that should be his fate. 
On his arrival at Trenton, he found the famous 
Mr. Smith of New York, father of the late 
chief-justice of Canada, one of the ablest 
lawyers in America, and of a religious char- 
:. who had voluntarily attended to aid in 



* His affectionate congregation felt deeply interested 
in his critical situation, and kept a da}- of fasting and 
prayer on the occasion. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 201 

his defence ; also his brother Gilbert, who was 
now settled in the pastoral charge of the 
second Presbyterian church in Philadelphia, 
and who had brought Mr. John Kinsey, one 
of the first counsellors of that city, for the 
same purpose. 

Messrs. Tennent and Stevens met these 
gentlemen at Mr. Coxe's, the morning before 
the trial was to come on. Mr. Coxe requested 
that they would bring their witnesses, that 
they might examine them previously to their 
going into court. Mr. Tennent answered, 
that he did not know of any witnesses but 
God and his own conscience. — Mr. Coxe re- 
plied, "If you have no witnesses, sir, the trial 
must be put off; otherwise you most cer- 
tainly will be convicted. Yon well know 
the strong testimony that will be brought 
against you, and the exertions that are mak- 
ing to accomplish your ruin." Mr. Tennent 
replied, " I am sensible of all this, yet it never 
shall be said that I have delayed the trial, or 
been afraid to meet the justice of my country. 
I know my own innocence, and that God 
whose I am, and whom I serve, will never 
suffer me to fall by these snares of the devil, 
or by the wicked machinations of his agents 
or servants; therefore, gentlemen, go on to 
the trial." Messrs. Smith and Kinsey, who 
were both religious men, told him that his 
confidence and trust in God, as a Christian 
minister of the gospel, was well founded, 
and, before a heavenly tribunal, would be all 
important to him ; but assured him it would 



202 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

not avail in an earthly court, and urged his 
consent to put off the trial. Mr. Tennent 
continued inflexible in his refusal ; on which 
Mr. Coxe told him, that since he was deter- 
mined to go to trial, he had the satisfaction 
of informing him, that they had discovered a 
flaw in the indictment, which might prove 
favourable to him on a demurrer. He asked 
for an explanation, and on finding that it was 
to admit the fact in a legal point of view, and 
rest on the law arising from it, Mr. Tennent 
broke out with great vehemence, saying that 
this was another snare of the devil, and be- 
fore he would consent to it he would suffer 
death. He assured his counsel that his con- 
fidence in God was so strong, and his assur- 
ance that He would bring about his deliver- 
ance some way or other, was so great, that 
he did not wish them to delay the trial for 
a moment. 

Mr. Stevens, whose faith was not of this 
description, and who was bowed down to the 
ground under the most gloomy apprehen- 
sions of suffering, as his neighbour Mr. An- 
derson had done, eagerly seized the opportu- 
nity of escape that was offered, and was 
afterwards discharged on the exception. 

Mr. Coxe still urged putting off the trial, 
charging Mr. Tennent with acting the part 
rather of a wild enthusiast, than of a meek 
and prudent Christian ; but he insisted that 
they should proceed, and left them in aston- 
ishment, not knowing how to act, when the 
bell summoned them to court. 



GOD DISPLAYED. 203 

Mr. Teiment had not walked far in the 
street before he met a man and his wife, who 
stopped him, and asked if his name was not 
Tennent. He answered in the affirmative ; 
and begged to know if they had any busi- 
ness with him. The man replied, i{ You best 
know." He told his name, and said that he 
was from a certain place (which he men- 
tioned) in Pennsylvania or Maryland; that 
Messrs. Rowland, Tennent, Anderson, and 
Stevens had lodged either at his house, or in a 
house wherein he and his wife had been ser- 
vants, (it is not now certain which,) at a partic- 
ular time which he named ; that on the follow- 
ing day they heard Messrs. Tennent and Row- 
land preach ; that some nights before they left 
home, he and his wife waked out of a sound 
sleep, and each told the other a dream which 
had just occurred, and which proved to be 
the same in substance ; to wit, that he, Mr. 
Tennent, was at Trenton, in the greatest pos- 
sible distress, and that it was in their power, 
and theirs only, to relieve him. Considering 
it as a remarkable dream only, they again 
went to sleep, and it was twice repeated, pre- 
cisely in the same manner, to both of them. 
This made so deep an impression on their 
minds, that they set off, and here they were, 
and would know of him what they were to 
do. — Mr. Tennent went with them immedi- 
ately to the court house, and his counsel, on 
examining the man and his wife, and finding 
their testimony to be full to the purpose, 
were, as they well might be, in perfect aston- 



204 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

ishment Before the trial began, another 
person, of a low character, called on Mr. Ten- 
nent, and told him that he was so harassed in 
conscience for the part he had been acting in 
this prosecution, that he could get no rest till 
he had determined to come and make a full 
confession. He sent this man to his counsel 
also. Soon after, Mr. Stockton from Prince- 
ton appeared, and addressed his testimony. 
In short, they went to trial, and, notwith- 
standing the utmost exertions of the ablest 
counsel, who had been employed to aid the 
attorney-general against Mr. Tennent, the 
advocates on his side so traced every move- 
ment of the defendant on the Saturday, Sun- 
day, and Monday in question, and satisfied 
the jury so perfectly on the subject, that they 
did not hesitate honourably to acquit Mr. 
Tennent, by their unanimous verdict of not 
guilty, to the great confusion and mortifica- 
tion of his numerous opposers. 



THE PROVIDENTIAL THUNDER-STORM. 

About the year 1797, Mr. M. was travelling 
from a town on the eastern border of Ver- 
mont, to another on the western side of the 
same state. Passing over the mountainous 
part of the country, between the Connecticut 
and Onion rivers, he perceived the heavens 



GOD DISPLAYED. 205 

to be gathering blackness : the sound of dis- 
tant thunder was heard, and a heavy shower 
of rain was seen to be fast approaching. 
The traveller was then in a forest ; no place 
of shelter appeared, and he hastened on until 
he arrived at a small cottage on the extreme 
border of the woods. The rain, just then, 
began to rush down with great violence. He 
sprang from his horse, pulled off his saddle, 
and without ceremony darted into the house. 
Surprised to see no family, but a single 
female with an infant child, he began to 
apologize for his sudden appearance ; and 
hoped she would not be alarmed, but permit 
him to tarry till the rain abated, as it was so 
violent. The woman replied, she was glad 
that any one had happened to come in, for 
she was always much terrified by thunder. 
" But why, madam," said he, " should you 
be afraid of thunder ? It is the voice of God, 
and will do no harm to those who love him, 
and commit themselves to his care. 7 ' After 
conversing awhile on this topic, he inquired 
if she had any neighbours who were reli- 
gious. She told him she had neighbours 
about two miles off, but whether they were . 
religious or not she did not know ; only she 
had heard that some man was in the habit 
of coming there to preach once a fortnight. 
Her husband went once, but she had never 
been to their meetings. In regard to every 
thing of a religious kind, she appeared to be 
profoundly ignorant. 

The rain had now passed over, and the 
IS 



206 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

face of nature smiled. The pious traveller, 
about to depart, expressed to the woman his 
thanks for her hospitality, and his earnest 
desire for the salvation of her soul. He ear- 
nestly besought her to read her Bible daily, 
and to give good heed to it, as to " a light 
shining in a dark place." She, with tears in 
her eyes, confessed that she had no Bible. 
They had never been able to buy one. 
" Could you read one if you had it ?" " Yes, 
sir, and would be glad to do so." " Poor 
woman," said he, " I do heartily pity you ; 
farewell/' 

He was preparing to pursue his journey. 
But he reflected : " This woman is in very 
great need of a Bible. that I had one to 
give her ! But I have not. As for money 
to buy one, I have none to spare ; I have no 
more than will be absolutely necessary for 
my expenses home. I must go : but if I 
leave this woman without the means to pro- 
cure the word of God, she may perish for 
lack of knowledge. What shall I do ?" A 
voice seemed to whisper, " He that hath pity 
on the poor, lendeth to the Lord. Cast thy 
bread upon the waters, for thou shalt find it 
after many days." His heart responded, " I 
will trust the Lord." He took a dollar from 
his purse, went back, and desired the woman 
to take it, and as soon as possible procure for 
herself a Bible. She promised to do so, 
saying, that she knew where one could be 
obtained. 

He again took his leave, and set off. As 



GOD DISPLAYED. 207 

there were then but few taverns on the road, 
he asked for a lodging at a private house, 
near which he found himself when night 
overtook him. He had yet a few pieces of 
change in his pocket; but as a journey of 
two more days was before him, he purposed 
to make his supper on a cold morsel which 
he had with him. But when the family 
came round their table to take their evening 
repast, the master of the house very urgently 
invited the stranger to join with them — not 
only so, but to crave God's blessing on their 
meal. He now began to feel himself among 
friends, and at liberty to speak freely on 
Divine things. The family appeared grati- 
fied in listening to his discourse till a late 
hour : it was a season of refreshing to their 
thirsty souls. In the morning, the traveller 
was urged to tarry till breakfast, but declined, 
the distance he had to travel requiring him 
to set off early. His host would take no 
compensation, and he departed, giving him 
many thanks. He travelled on till late in 
the morning, when, finding no public house, 
he stopped 2 gain at a private one for refresh- 
ment. While waiting, he lost no time to re- 
commend Christ, and him crucified, to the 
family. When ready to depart, he offered 
to pay the mistress of the house, who had 
waited upon him very kindly, for his repast, 
and the oats for his horse; but she would 
receive nothing. Thus he went on, asking 
for refreshment as often as he needed it, and 
recommending religion wherever he called 5 



SOS THE PROVIDENCE OF 

and always offering, as another traveller 
would do, to pay his expenses; but no one 
would accept his money, although it was not 
known that his stock was so low, for he told 
them not, and his appearance was respecta- 
ble. At home he was a man of wealth. 
<•' What," thought he, " does this mean ? I 
was never treated in this manner on a jour- 
ney before." The dollar given to the desti- 
tute woman recurred to his mind ; and con- 
science replied, « I have been well paid. It 
is, indeed, safe lending to the Lord." On 
the second day after he left the cottage in the 
wilderness he arrived safely at home; and 
still had money for the poor, having been at 
no cost whatever. 

About a year and a half after this, a stran- 
ger called at the house of ZNIr. M. for some 
refreshment. In the course of conversation, 
he observed that he lived on the other side 
of the mountain, near Connecticut river. 
31r. M. inquired about some gentlemen there 
with whom he was acquainted, and was 
pleased to find that the stranger knew them 
well. He then asked him whether the peo- 
ple in that vicinity paid much attention to 
religion. The traveller replied, i; Not much ; 
but in a town twenty or thirty miles beyond 
the river, where 1 am acquainted, there has 
been a powerful revival. The commence- 
ment of it was very extraordinary. The first 
person that was awakened and brought to re- 
pentance, was a poor woman, who lived in a 
very retired place. At the time of her baptism, 



GOD DISPLAYED. 209 

she related, that some time before, a stranger 
was driven into her house by a thunder-storm, 
and talked to her so seriously, that she be- 
gan, while listening to his discourse, to feel 
concerned about her soul. The gentleman 
was much affected when he found that she 
had no Bible ; and after he had left the house 
to go on his journey, returned again, and 
gave her a dollar to buy one ; and charged 
her to get it soon, and read it diligently. She 
did so ; and it had been the means, as she 
believed, of bringing her from darkness into 
light; from a state of stupidity and sin, to 
delight in the truth and ways of God. The 
name of this pious man, or the place of his 
residence, she knew not. But she believed 
it was the Lord that sent him. At this rela- 
tion, and the great change which was obvi- 
ous in the woman, her neighbours wondered 
much. They were induced to meditate on 
the goodness, wisdom, and power of God, 
displayed in this singular event of his provi- 
dence, They were led to think of the im- 
portance of attending more to the Bible them- 
selves ; and were finally awakened to a deep 
concern for the salvation of their souls. As 
many as thirty or forty are already hope- 
fully converted, and rejoicing in God their 
Saviour." Mr. M., who had listened to this 
relation with a heart swelling more and more 
with wonder, gratitude, and joy, could refrain 
no longer ; but, with hands and eyes upraised 
to heaven, exclaimed, " My God, thou hast 
paid me again !" 



210 THE PROVIDENCE OF 



PROVIDENTIAL ESCAPE OF A YOUNG LADY. 

In the life of the Rev. Samuel Drew, of St. 
Austell, Cornwall, we find the following 
account of the remarkable escape of his 
sister, as related by herself: — 

" I think," she relates, "it was some time 
in the month of November, 1796, when I 
was about twenty-five years of age, that I 
met with the following occurrence. I had 
been at St. Austell, and was returning to my 
father's house, about five o'clock in the even- 
ing. To shorten my journey, the weather 
being cold and boisterous, I crossed a river 
near the sea, and travelled over a sandy 
beach. This was the usual route when the 
tide permitted; but at its farther extremity I 
had to pass under a cliff, which, at high 
water, the influx of the waves renders dan- 
gerous, and sometimes impracticable. On 
approaching this place, I found that the tide 
had advanced farther than I had anticipated ; 
yet thinking myself safe, being within half a 
mile of my home, I entered the water with- 
out any apprehension ; but I had not pro- 
ceeded far before I found it much deeper 
than I expected. 

" Having discovered my error, the cliff be- 
ing on my left hand, and the turbulent sea 
on my right, I endeavoured to tnrn my horse 
and retreat ; but in doing this the poor animal 
fell over a projecting rock. By this fall I 
was thrown from him on the side next the 



GOD DISPLAYED. 211 

sea, and in an instant was buried in the 
waves. I, however, retained my senses, and 
aware of my danger, held fast by the horse, 
which, after some struggling, drew me safely 
on the beach. 

" But although I had thus far escaped the 
violence of the surf, my situation was dread- 
fully insecure. I now found myself hem- 
med in between two projecting points, with 
scarcely the possibility of getting around 
either. The tide was also encroaching 
rapidly on me, and the cliff it was impos- 
sible to scale. The wind, which had been 
blowing in an angry manner, now increased 
its fury. Thunder began to roll, and the 
vivid lightning, gleaming on the surface of 
the water, just interrupted the surrounding 
darkness, to show me the horror of my situa- 
tion. This was accompanied with tremen- 
dous showers of hail, from the violence of 
which I could find no shelter. Thus circum- 
stanced, I made a desperate effort to remount 
my horse, resolving to pass one of the pro- 
jecting points, as my only chance of safety, 
or perish in the attempt ; but all my efforts 
proved unsuccessful, and to this inability it is 
probable that I owe my life. 

" The tide gaining fast upon me, the poor 
animal instinctively mounted a rock; and I 
with difficulty followed the example. In 
this forlorn condition, I made another ineffec- 
tual effort to remount, without duly consider- 
ing the inevitable destruction that awaited 
me 3 in case I had succeeded. 



212 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

" The waves, urged on by the tempest, to 
the whole rigour of which I stood exposed, 
soon told me that my retreat was unsafe. 
The rock on which myself and horse stood 
was soon covered with the rising tide, and at 
times we were so nearly overwhelmed that I 
could literally say, 6 Thy waves and thy bil- 
lows are gone over me.' Surrounded thus 
by water, my horse made another desperate 
effort, and happily gained a still more elevated 
crag. I followed, but with considerable diffi- 
culty ; and as all further ascent appeared im- 
practicable, in this -place I expected to meet 
my fate. 

" Under this impression, with < but a step 
between me and death,' I began seriously to 
reflect on the solemnities and near approach 
of eternity, into which, perhaps, a few min- 
utes might hurry my disembodied spirit. In 
these awful moments I can truly say, < I cried, 
by reason of mine affliction, unto the Lord, 
and he heard me.' In the midst of the 
waters I knelt on a rock, and commended 
my soul to Him who hath all power in 
heaven and earth, well knowing that he was 
able to say to the turbulent ocean, < Hitherto 
shalt thou come, but no farther, and here 
shall thy proud waves be stayed.' At one 
time I felt a gleam of hope; but this was 
speedily destroyed by the increasing waters, 
which, still gaining upon us, convinced me 
that the tide had not yet reached its height. 

" Conceiving my own deliverance to be 
scarcely possible, I felt anxious for the escape 



GOD DISPLAYED. 213 

of my horse, and with this view endeavoured 
to disencumber him of the bridle and saddle, 
that, in attempting to swim, he might find no 
impediment to prevent his reaching the shore. 
But while I was thus engaged, to my utter 
astonishment, by a violent exertion, the horse 
partially ascended another crag, so as to keep 
his head above the water. I was not long 
in attempting a similar effort, in which I 
happily succeeded. This, however, was our 
last retreat ; for just over my head projected 
a large shelving rock, above which it was 
impossible to ascend. Here I sat down, 
with a mind somewhat composed, to wait the 
event. 

" After remaining in this situation for some 
time, 1 began to hope that the tide had 
reached its height ; and in this I was at 
length confirmed by the light of the rising 
moon, which, gleaming on the rocks, showed, 
to my inexpressible joy, that the water had 
actually begun to subside. I was now con- 
vinced, that if we could retain our position 
until the water had retired, and I could sur- 
vive the cold, we might both be preserved ; 
but this was exceedingly doubtful. The pos- 
ture in which my horse stood was nearly 
perpendicular; and I was cherished by the 
warmth which proceeded from his breath, as 
I kept his head near my bosom, and derived 
from it a benefit which experience only can 
explain. 

" As the tide retired, and the moon rose, 1 
discovered, by its increasing light, to what a 



214 THE PROVIDENCE OF 

fearful height we had ascended ; and that to 
descend in safety was not less difficult than 
the means of getting up had been extraordi- 
nary. This, however, was at last effected 
without any material accident. On reaching 
the beach, from which the waves had now 
retired, I endeavoured to walk towards my 
home, but found myself so benumbed that I 
was unable ; and my voice was so nearly 
gone that I could not call for help, although 
I was not far from my father's house, and 
near many kind neighbours, who would have 
risked their lives to render me assistance, if 
they had known of my situation. 

" Being unable to proceed, I seated myself 
upon a rock, and expected, from the intense 
cold, that I must perish, although I had 
escaped the fury of the tempest, and the 
drenching of the waves. How long I re- 
mained there I cannot say with certainty, but 
when almost reduced to a state of insensi- 
bility, I was providentially discovered in this 
position by my father's servant, who had 
been sent out to search for me ; as, from the 
lateness of the hour, the family had antici- 
pated some misfortune, and become alarmed. 

" I had been in the water about three or 
four hours, and exposed to the disasters of 
the tempest from about five in the evening to 
half-past eleven at night. I then reached my 
comfortable dwelling, much exhausted, but to 
the great joy of my affectionate parent, who, 
I doubt not, had been offering up petitions in 



GOD DISPLAYED. 215 

my behalf to Him who hears the prayers 
that are presented to him in sincerity. 

" For this preservation I desire to thank 
my God ; but my words are poor, and insuffi- 
cient for this purpose. May all my actions 
praise him, and may my lengthened life be 
devoted to his glory !" 



THE END. 



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